No Way Out: A Darker Side to the MLP Universe
by Anonymous Hornet
Summary: Alex is normal, his is life wonderful. Well, that is until the ponies enter his life. After someone or something sends him to Equestria, Alex is faced with a post-apocalyptic world filled with deceit, suffering, death, and evil. Friends will be found, enemies will be made, and love will flutter about. But is there truly a way out? Or are they damned to a life of misery? Reviews?
1. Chapter 0-1: The Beginning of It All

***Warning* Disturbing scenes. Do not read if you are faint of heart!**

**This is the prequel to No Way Out. The events of this story take place two years before the events of the prologue of No Way Out.**

* * *

Desert Wind was walking. No, wandering he liked to call it. Some called him a wanderer. Most called him a nomad. One pony had even called him out of his mind. But, he was definitely not out of his mind. He was truly a wanderer, roamer of the lands without a permanent home in sight. He always had planned destinations to reach before his next adventure. He did not have a Cutie Mark as most he met did. He was light tan with sienna brown hair and sand colored eyes. On this certain day he was in the middle of traveling to one of his destinations when he stumbled upon Ponyville.

"Ummm. I think I took a wrong turn.", He mumbled to himself. He looked around. The streets were quiet but a house was burning close by. Why was that? Kitchen fire? Accident? Arson? From the direction of the house, a pink pony came trotting down the walk, charred and blackened, with glee on her face. She trotted all the way up to Desert, who in turn, backed up a little.

"HI!", she trilled jubilantly.

"Hi?", Desert responded. He was a little crept out by this pony. For one she seemed to be the arsonist. And two, she kept searching his body.

"My name is Pinkie Pie! And you are!?", she asked. Her eyes sparkled. She had a sick grin that told a story on its own.

"Lost, confused, crept out, and leaving.", Desert returned. He began to turn around but was stopped by Pinkie stepping in front of him.

"Oh don't leave. The fun hasn't even started yet!", She said, blocking Desert from leaving.

"Please let me go. I have somewhere to be. I made a wrong turn somewhere, so just step aside, and let me pass through without interruption.", Desert said. He finally pushed Pinkie to the side and continued walking out towards his destination.

"But why would you want to leave?", She asked, skipping beside him gleefully.

"Because I have no doubt that you are deranged. Don't you have unfinished business?", Desert answered, looking in the direction of the half burnt down house.

"Their number was drawn. Once someone's number is drawn, there is no stopping their imminent demise.", Pinkie retorted coldly. Desert stopped and turned to face Pinkie.

"I have no idea what the hell you are talking about. Just leave me out of it, okay?", Desert said. He turned around once more and continued on his path of destiny.

Pinkie stood there confused. "He does not want to play with me willingly. We will have to force him then!", she mumbled. She reached inside the pack on her back and took out a cloth and a bottle with a liquid in it. She dampened the cloth with the contents of the bottle. She then put the bottle away. She snuck up behind Desert, completely unaware that he was being followed. She raised the cloth and prepared to jump. She jumped and got Desert perfectly, covering his mouth and nose completely. He began to struggle but blacked out after a few seconds. He dropped to the ground. The great and wise Desert had been chloroformed.

* * *

A few days passed by with no real events. Desert had awoken in a house, sleeping on a couch. Pinkie was at a table nearby, watching him. He introduced himself and told Pinkie of his predicament. She didn't seem to care that much. When he was strong enough to walk, she took him on a tour of the town. Three days he slept in her house, each night awoken by screams of terror from her. She was friendly enough, and very pleasing to listen to. She had all kinds of stories to tell from when she was younger, whether they were sad or happy, funny or serious. She killed one during that time, leaving Desert alone. He was compelled not to leave. He wanted to learn more about Pinkie. She was quite confusing. She returned an hour later tired, sick, and traumatized. Then one night, she chloroformed him once more while he was wandering the town.

* * *

When Desert awoke, he found himself in a basement of sorts. He was locked on a medical bed, strapped in at all hooves. He felt a twang of pain in his right, front leg. On it, the number 110 had been carved.

"Oh great! Now my clock is ticking.", he retorted to no one. Or so he thought. He looked front and center. And that is when he saw her. She was sitting on a chair, front two legs folded on the table in front of her. She smiled and got up, pushing the chair back in when she got up. "Pinkie Pie. What exactly have you done or are planning to do to me?", Desert asked her.

"Nothing yet. I simply need you asleep so I could carve your number in. So, I took drastic measures.", she responded blandly.

"You call this drastic? I call this capture. You couldn't have just done it while I slept? I would have been able to take the pain.", Desert retorted. She began to say something but stopped. Her face turned angry.

"You cheat Pinkie!", she spat.

"Well then I guess it is 1 to nothing. Zilch.", Desert said with triumph.

"Gahhh! Well then, it is time for a play date!", she smiled. Desert began to panic. What was she going to do with him? She walked up to him. Their eyes locked. "Lift up your head.", she commanded.

"Nope."

"One more chance."

"Yo no lo creo." (Spanish for I don't think so.)

"Fine. Then I will have to force you."

Pinkie slid a metal bar under Desert's head. She began to push down on the bar using her hooves. The bar split in the middle, pushing Desert up with it. She kept on pushing down. Soon they came close as to almost touching snouts. Pinkie stared for a second. Her eyes began to brighten. Then she shook her head. She jumped off the bar and got a collar off a table. She silently put it around Desert's neck. When she had tightened it, she began to nuzzle a little bit of the leather. Then she backed off, satisfied with her work. Desert knew at that moment what it was. It was a proximity shock collar. Step out of range and you were zapped. Pinkie then unlocked his bindings.

"There!", she said gleefully.

Desert considered his options. In all horrible truth, there weren't that many. He could try to grab the proximity lace off Pinkie's neck and bolt. No, she would have some fail safe for that. He could try and rip off the collar on something. Bad idea. He would either hurt himself or get hurt by Pinkie. Badly. So what else!? Desert was almost on an epiphany when Pinkie began walking up the steps. Desert followed quickly behind her, not wanting to get shocked by his own stupidity. At the top of the steps, he collapsed, exhausted. When he couldn't get up, Pinkie half dragged, half carried him to the couch. He climbed up and lay flat. He let out a groan as his muscles cried out in pain.

"Don't worry. It is a side effect of the chloroform I use, if it is used too much. I would not let my companions die so peacefully.", she stated. Desert looked up at her. His vision was becoming blurry and double. Pinkie noticed his weird behavior and got him water. He gulped it down. It seemed to negate the effects and he felt better, for the time being.

"Thank you."

"It is time to get down to business. The number 62 has been drawn. We must start our work."

"Wait a second. You think I am actually going to help you!?"

"Not willingly no. But it seems you have no choice." Pinkie flicked her eyes to the collar.

"Well, crap! It looks like its me 0 and you 1, huh."

"Pinkie always wins in the end!", she said with a smile.

"Great. Now, business you said?"

"Right! The number 62 has been drawn. Their fate has been sealed."

"So when do we start?"

"Now! Follow me!"

Pinkie walked out of the house and Desert followed her. They arrived at what seemed to be one of the towns center areas. Pinkie found a table and sat. Desert stood by and watched. After a while, an orange pony with braided yellow hair and a stetson walked by. Pinkie reacted excitedly to this.

"Aha! Number 62! Applejack!", Pinkie said happily.

"Wait a second, you know her!?", Desert spat.

"Of course! She is my friend. Or so she thinks."

"WHAT! You are going to kill your friend! What kind of crazed pony are you! I have heard of mass murder, but not like this!"

"Oh, you are so naive. Everyone has a number. Even the handsome stallions.", Pinkie grinned. She winked at Desert.

"Even me, who you just met."

"I have a number too! It just has never been drawn."

"I highly doubt that."

Pinkie held up her front right leg. On it, the number 1 was carved.

"See?"

"Okay, you got me. But, when do we start? We are still just sitting here."

"I must think of how to kill her."

"You? You have to think of a way to kill somepony?"

"Shut up! I am forming together a plan."

Silence. Such a pitiful thing at times. Pinkie's face lit up after a moment.

"Aha!"

"What did you come up with?"

"You will see, soon enough." Pinkie smiled and watched as Applejack bought something from a vendor.

"What do we do now?"

"Now, we go home. We put our plan into action!" She reached over and pulled off the collar from Desert's neck.

"You took it off."

"Of course! Roam around! Be free! But be back at home before sunset. If you aren't, I will find you. And you don't want to know what I will do to you if I find you, which I will."

"I understand."

"Good." Pinkie got up and walked off. Desert was about to do the same when somepony tapped his shoulder. He looked to his left. A purple unicorn stood there. Her face was kind, her expression grave.

"Watch your back around her. She will exploit you and your weaknesses.", said the mare.

"Thanks for the advice. My name is Desert Wind. And yours?", Desert asked kindly.

"Twilight Sparkle. But just call me Twilight. I know Pinkie more than anyone else. She is dangerous. I just want to make sure that you are at least safe."

"Thank you. It might help. But in the mean time, I am going to find some peace and quiet.", Desert responded politely. Twilight smiled at him. He smiled back. Then he walked off, in search of a place to think thoughts and channel his anger.

* * *

Sunset had fallen and Desert arrived at Pinkie's home. He knocked and she answered.

"Right on time! Come in!", she said cheerily.

"Yeah. Here I am.", Desert said tiredly. He walked in and Pinkie closed the door behind him. She walked past him towards a counter. She reached into a cabinet and pulled out a bottle and two glasses. "Is that...Wine?", Desert asked, curiosity visible on his face.

"Yes.", Pinkie said admittedly. "It helps me focus before I have to do something. My mind wanders too much. And after the accident...", She said. Desert looked worriedly into her eyes.

"What happened?", he asked softly.

"I don't want to talk about it. I let my mind wander. It led to a mistake. Just don't ask, please.", Pinkie moaned.

"It is fine.", Desert soothed. Pinkie smiled. She raised her glass.

"To a night of free experience!", she said happily. Desert raised his glass. Then they drank. All was silent for some time. During that time, Pinkie appeared to be deep in thought. Then she looked at Desert, tears in her eyes. She walked over to him. She put her head on his shoulder and began to cry. Desert couldn't stand to see her crying. No, he could! No! What was going on!? He couldn't possibly be attracted to her, right? Right!? He ran his hoof through her mane.

"What? Why are you crying?", he asked.

"I am so tired of all of the ridicule! Everyone thinks that I am the life of the town, but they don't understand me! They don't understand the prison that is is called my brain. They just...think...", Pinkie cried. She then buried herself further into Desert's mane. Desert pushed her back, gently but firmly. She stared into his eyes, tears spilling onto the floor. Desert tried the only thing that he could think of. He leaned forward and kissed Pinkie. Her eyes widened, but then closed as she calmed. She opened her eyes once more, now shining with happiness. She backed up, blushing.

"I am so sorry. I couldn't think of anything better to do. I just couldn't stand to see you crying. It...disturbs me. It makes me remember my past.", Desert apologized.

"D-Don't worry about it. Y-you did wh-what you thought w-was right.", Pinkie breathed. She was slightly swaying, and her eyes were darting around. But then, a knock resounded from the door. Pinkie shot bolt upright, fear in her eyes. Then she settled down and walked to the door. She opened it to see a yellow pegasus with pink hair. She had kind and caring blue eyes.

"Hi Pinkie. You wanted me?", she asked.

"Yes Fluttershy! I need you to deliver something. I need you to deliver it to Applebloom. And quickly! Tell her it is from an anonymous source.", Pinkie explained. As Fluttershy absorbed this information, Pinkie grabbed an envelope from a desk top near the door. She handed it Fluttershy, who put it in a sack. Fluttershy smiled.

"Bye Pinkie.", she said, and then she flew off to where ever this Applebloom lived. Pinkie shut the door.

"No death? No killing or torture? I thought that's what you are all about.", Desert asked.

"Oh there will be death. Trust me. Now, we must rest. We have a long day tomorrow.", Pinkie said sternly. Desert walked toward the couch and laid down upon it. Pinkie gave him one last look before climbing stairs to the bedroom. Or at least, Desert thought it was the bedroom. Whatever. A question for another day. He closed his eyes and went to sleep.

* * *

"A-Applebloom! What has gotten inta' you!?", Applejack cried.

"Don't you dare lie! We are a proud family! How could you ruin us!?", Applebloom screamed. Applebloom had Applejack against a wall. Applebloom had a dagger in her mouth, and she skillfully twisted and twitched it around without cutting her self.

"I don't know what you are talkin' bout'.", Applejack moaned.

"I saw the letters! Don't you deny them!", Applebloom shouted. She took the knife out of her mouth.

The letters. How did she get them? Oh no. This was bad.

"We can reason this okay? Just put the knife down, and we will talk bout' this.", Applejack soothed, face showing genuine honesty.

"There is no reasoning to be had. You have disgraced the family name. Now, your time is up.", Applebloom sneered. She jabbed the knife straight into Applejack's stomach, causing a burst of blood. Applejack screamed. Big Mac was watching this happen. _"__How could she do this to us!?", he thought._ She deserved the death she was receiving. Applebloom thrust the knife upwards, tearing open Applejack's stomach. Applejack screamed again. Applebloom silenced her with a quick slit of the throat. Applejack struggled for breath for a few seconds. Then, she slumped, lying in a pool of her own blood and internals. Applebloom stood back, admiring her work. She closed Applejack's eyes.

"We must move the body.", Big Mac said. Applebloom looked at him and nodded. Together they dragged Applejack's limp body outside. Big Mac dug a shallow hole into the ground. They dumped the body inside.

"I hope where ever you go, you are not punished. You deserved what you got, but no more. Sleep well. 'Sister'.", Applebloom spat. They covered the hole and cleaned up the blood. No one found out about the death. Applejack had traveled away. Forever.

* * *

Twilight was asleep in bed when she felt the pain. It happened quickly and suddenly, jerking her from her sleep. She felt as if a knife had been plunged into her stomach. She stifled a scream. Then pain ripped through her body as the "knife" moved upwards. Then she couldn't breathe. And finally, it was over. Twilight sat sucking in air. Another had died. Yet, only she was going to know about it. The name of the deceased came to her.

"Applejack.", she cried softly. She fell to sleep, her dreams plagued with that of being buried alive.

* * *

Desert awoke at the sound of a small hoof-fall to his left. He opened his eyes and watched as Pinkie sat down near him. She didn't notice that he was awake. She began to talk to herself.

"But if his number is drawn... Of course not! Why would I do that!? You saw it! He has some small affection for me. That doesn't mean anything! He kissed me! Now why would he do that? Oh! Of course now you don't have anything to say! You are afraid of him, aren't you? You are afraid that he will stop you! I can't bear it anymore! Rose, I will say this once. Get. Out. Of. My. HEAD!", Pinkie said. She shook her head and walked up to Desert. She sat down next to him and put her head on his chest. "I won't let her hurt you. Even if it means I die. I will keep you from her. She will kill you. I know it."

"You worry about me. You worry that this Rose will kill me. But who is she?", Desert asked. Pinkie jumped.

"H-How much d-did y-you hear?", Pinkie asked timidly.

"All of it.", Desert responded. Pinkie sighed.

"I don't know who she is. I don't even know if she is real. But, she wants you dead. And I worry for you. Every time I go near you I fear that she will take over and kill you.", Pinkie cried softly. Desert pulled her onto the couch. She laid down beside him.

"Don't worry for me. I would be better off dead. I have too much on my mind to even begin to explain.", Desert stated. Pinkie gasped.

"Don't say those things about yourself. There are ponies out there that might still want you alive, like your family and friends.", she said.

"Those people are unimportant to me. I was an outlier of my kind.", Desert responded. There was a silence for some time.

"Have you ever felt fear?", Pinkie asked.

Desert thought. He remembered all the death. He remembered all the fires and screaming. He remember those creatures, dark and evil in the black night. He remembered the panic when there was blood but no bodies, yet their friends were still there. He remembered Cactus Bloom saying her final words, dying in a corner with her chest torn open. He remembered as he and the filly ran for their lives. He remembered looking back and seeing nothing he remembered. So had Desert ever felt fear. The answer was a definite yes.

"I...no.", Desert

"There is deception in your eyes.", Pinkie noted.

"I have never felt fear, but, I have been lonely for some time.", Desert said.

"Which is why you should go back to your family. You are much better off at home.", Pinkie said looking into Desert's eyes.

"A long time ago maybe, but they are gone now. I am alone and unwanted.", Desert sighed.

"So-So you are the last I am guessing? Of your kind?", Pinkie asked sadly.

"No. There is one other. But I don't know where she could have gone. I will tell you my story another time. You need to sleep. I hear you toss and turn at night. It is obvious that you dream very horribly when you sleep.", Desert said sternly.

"I can't! She will hurt me! She will torture me!", Pinkie cried.

"She won't. I will make sure she doesn't.", Desert soothed. Pinkie studied Desert's eyes. Then she got off the couch and walked up to her room. Desert had to calm her only once that night.

* * *

When Desert awoke in the morning, the house seemed deserted. Nothing stirred and there was no light on. He checked upstairs and Pinkie was gone. Where could she have went off to? Wait! She had the underground lab area. He hadn't checked there yet. The sight he saw when he descended the stairs made him jump. Pinkie was passed out on the "watching" table. But, it wasn't this that made him jump. The thing that made him jump was the fact that she had a huge gash down her back and blood was dripping out her mouth. He ran over to her.

"Pinkie! Wake up!", he cried. She was still alive, per the fact she was still breathing. She opened her eyes, which were pale. Her skin had taken on a ghastly white hue.

"I must die.", she said weakly, "It is the only way to stop her."

"No, you mustn't!", Desert countered.

"Tell them," Pinkie let out a hacking cough and spit out blood before she continued. "Tell them that the nightmare is over. No more will people disappear from the town over night."

"What did you do!?", Desert asked.

"Why would I tell you? I don't want to live.", Pinkie breathed.

"Pinkie!"

"I..." She sighed. "I used Prednisone. I then crushed it and mixed it with water and arsenic. The ultimate killer. In five minutes, I will lose feeling of all my extremities. In ten, my internal organs will shut down. By the twelve minute mark, I will be nothing but a corpse. For the better."

"Jesus Christ! Pinkie, why!?", Desert asked.

"Because I must kill Rose! She won't stop until ponies die! I must take care of her, by taking care of myself.", Pinkie explained weakly.

"But I care for you! Pinkie, don't do this. I...need you. You are helping me find my path. You are leading me to where I belong. Even though it has been only a few days, I already feel that we can help each other.", Desert said. He held one of Pinkie's hooves in his. "How did you get the poison into your body?"

"Via syringe. On the floor to my left.", Pinkie said. Her voice was weaker already. Desert found it and got straight to work. He may have been a traveler, but his kind had been masters of medicine. He had started learning when he was three, so he knew much at this point. He cleaned the syringe with uncanny precision. He then proceeded to find all sorts of pills and liquids. But there was one missing. Five minutes had passed. Still no luck. His search became frantic. He just couldn't find it! Ten minutes. He gave up and sat with Pinkie. He brushed the hair out of her eyes. They watched each other, waiting for the time to come. Pinkie closed her eyes and Desert pulled her closer. Her body was thin and light. She was surely dead. One minute. Then something crazy happened. Pinkie shot up, color returning to her body and eyes. But, her eyes had changed color. They were now a very dark, navy-ish blue.

"NO! The host will not die!", she said. Her voice had changed too. It sounded somewhat deeper. She began to float out of Desert's hooves. She started convulsing in the air. Her body glowed and a liquid began to flow out of the gash on her back. All of it was deposited into a beaker. Then the gash closed up and healed over, leaving nothing but a light mark. Then her eyes changed back to normal and she crashed to the floor, missing the table by an inch. Desert picked her up and set her down on a chair. Her eyes fluttered open, as if to adjust to the light. Then she screamed and hit the table.

"Damn! She just won't let me die! She is just too powerful!", she growled.

"She saved your life.", Desert pointed out.

"For her sake only. If she could go into another body, she would have let me die.", Pinkie responded.

"You mustn't give up Pinkie. We will find a way to get her out of your mind. Just come up, I will get you some water.", Desert said softly. Pinkie looked at him for a few seconds, then got shakily to her hooves. She walked slowly up the stairs, taking each step gingerly. Desert didn't know for sure, but he thought that she might have done more damage than Rose could repair. That stuff was deadly and absolutely destroyed the body. When she got to the top she collapsed, and had to be helped up by Desert. He half carried, half dragged her to the table and made her sit down. He then got her a glass of water. She took a sip and then looked at him.

"We must continue killing. It is the only way I can keep Rose at bay. She enjoys the death. It...pleases her.", Pinkie said.

"We shall do what we can then. It seems like we don't have a choice. And I am not letting you die by the hands of some infernal entity.", Desert said. "You hear that Rose? You are not going to take the life of this innocent mare. I will do what you bid, even if it means killing, so long as you leave your hands off Pinkie, understand!?"

Desert heard a voice in his head. It was that of Rose.

Oh, I understand. But don't blame me if you die trying to punish me. I am more powerful than you think. Just you wait. Once I am free, you can snuggle with this piece of trash all you want, in hell!

Then the voice was gone.

"I must draw another number!", Pinkie exclaimed, getting up. She collapsed once more. Desert helped her onto the chair again.

"Oh no you don't. You are too weak right now. What you need is rest. Tomorrow, okay? Rose, don't push her. She destroyed everything in her body. She is too weak to be out and about. Let her rest and try to heal her. We will kill tomorrow. Be patient.", Desert commanded.

Pinkie started to argue, but then stopped herself. She sighed and got shakily to her feet again. Desert helped her up the stairs and to her bed. She lay down upon it, and fell almost instantly to sleep. Good. With that done, Desert would find that Twilight mare. She might be able to help him in destroying Rose. He left the house, closing the door behind him.

* * *

It was a crisp, early morning, but Twilight was already about. But she wasn't doing anything much. She was simply enjoying the quiet calm of the morning. It sure beat those terrible dreams. Applebloom walked around the corner and up to Twilight. Her face was very grave and serious.

"You know about what we did?", she asked coldly.

"The fact that you murdered your own sister? Yes.", Twilight scoffed.

"She betrayed our family! She deserved to die! I will come for you if I even hear one peep about my sister. Everyone is going to be convinced that she left. Do I have your word? Or do I have to kill you too?", Applebloom asked.

"My lips are sealed. Trust me. There are much worse things that I have seen. Now, run along. Get your speech ready. A different story will never work.", Twilight said sweetly. Applebloom growled and walked off. Desert walked out of the shadows, unnoticed by Twilight.

"And that was about?", he asked nicely. Twilight jumped and turned around, horn blazing. When she saw it was Desert she calmed slightly.

"My! You scared the life out of me!", Twilight breathed.

"That wasn't the answer to my question.", Desert said coldly. Twilight thought the mean pony thing was an act. But then she saw his eyes. There was no joking behind them, not even the slightest hint.

"Nothing!", she blurted out. Desert approached Twilight and backed her against a wall. He had at least a foot on her, and she doubted that her magic would work on him. His mind was filled with secrets, things never to be taught or learned again.

"Oh really? That filly looked really pissed at you. And you tell me it's nothing.", Desert said mockingly. He had Twilight blocked, no escaping.

"I know when someone dies. I feel their pain. Then I dream about where they are buried. That filly was Applebloom. Last night, she killed her sister, Applejack.", Twilight said after a pause. There was fear, regret, shame, and sadness all expressed on her face. Desert became puzzled. He backed up and gave Twilight some space. She walked forward, watching Desert carefully.

"When did this start?", he asked. His tone was soft again, but his face was still stone.

"About a year ago. Pinkie's first kill. It was messy. Blood everywhere. But, she didn't hide the body. She was almost caught. But she escaped. But I caught her. She admitted she had done the murder. She said that she didn't have a choice. I believed her only because she was telling the truth. I secretly used magic to test her, and she wasn't lying about having no choice. So, I let her go, with a warning of course. I didn't expect her to continue. That's when I saw the change. She told me about something in her head. Something named Rose Red. She told me that this Rose thing enjoyed the pain and suffering of others. Pinkie told me she feared for her life. This Rose thing was destroying her from the inside out. Pinkie had once been exciting and lively. But soon, she drew back from the crowd. She would disappear into her house for days on end. And then the murders became more organized. Cleaner and more stealthy at that. And now you have come along. So that is a year's worth of death put into a paragraph for you.", Twilight said weakly. Desert was looking at her in a way that made Twilight feel like her insides had turned into ice. She turned and began to walk away.

"You hide something from me.", Desert growled. Twilight froze in place. Static and chills ran through her body. She turned back. Desert had one hoof raised and pointed at her. Black fire was blazing along the length of the leg. Yeah, secrets never to be learned or taught again. Twilight reluctantly walked back to Desert.

"Yes. I do hide something from you. But maybe because it is personal.", Twilight retorted.

"Pinkie tried to kill her self this morning."

"What!?", Twilight cried.

"Oh, did I forget to mention that? She put drugs and poison inside her body. She basically ate away at everything in her body. This Rose thing? It saved her. But only for the purpose of more death. Now, I suggest you tell me what you are hiding, or I might have to go through that all over again. And, the death will continue.", Desert spat.

"I...uh...it's hard to explain...I just don't think...", Twilight started. She sighed. "Pinkie doesn't see things normally."

"Excuse me?"

"Her brain. It processes at a speed incomparable to anything. She can visualize everything before hand. Then she goes in, commits the murder, hides the body, what's left of it any way, cleans up, and is gone before a scream can even be heard."

"So what you are telling me is that Pinkie can see a murder in her mind and then commit it, detail for detail, step-by-step, with no flaws? And no chance of being caught?"

"Exactly. There is no evidence, therefore, no proof towards the murder and the suspect. If you planned on telling someone official, scratch that off your list. You will never find the evidence necessary without you yourself being convicted."

"Damn."

"Damn is correct. But there is a way that might be able to stop her."

"What is that?"

"Get as close to her as possible. Learn how this Rose functions. Try to block her out."

* * *

Pinkie lie awake in her bed. Rose would not let her sleep. She kept her up using all kinds of methods. When one began to fail, another was used. It was driving Pinkie insane. But wasn't she already insane? No, that was Rose. But it sure felt as if she were the victim. Actually, if one put thought into it, Pinkie was the victim. She was prey to Schizophrenia. She was sure of it. Just some second personality that was just now showing. There was no entity. There was no Rose. Just a tortured and disturbed mind.

"Let's talk!", Rose said gleefully.

"Shut up Rose. I am trying to sleep. Can you just lay off the annoyance?"

"Not until I am strong enough to take over your body. Your mind is too strong right now. But soon..."

"I literally destroyed my body trying to get rid of you. Could you at least let me sleep and you try to heal my wounds? The faster you do that, the faster the killing starts."

"But that would be no fun! I am enjoying our time together! It is letting me get in touch with my inner bitch. And your inner annoyance. And your innards."

Pinkie felt a bolt of pain shoot through her body. It originated from her lungs.

"Damn it Rose! Just leave me the hell alone!"

"The time is nearing. Master will be called upon soon. Then destruction shall rain from the sky and erupt from the ground. All shall worship HIM or die by HIS hands."

"What kind of nonsense are you speaking?", Pinkie asked. But then all was silent. Rose was focused on something else. Pinkie finally went to sleep. She dreamed about a hooded Desert sitting in the dusk, flames arsing from his hooves.

* * *

Desert had begun to wander the town. It had been exactly four hours since he had talked to Twilight. And already, things seemed to be getting heavy in the air. He could see it and feel it. Parents followed their children everywhere they went. Loners constantly watched their backs. Groups stayed close together. Dark alley ways and corners were avoided. It seemed as if Pinkie was more noticed than she originally thought. Everyone kept their eyes sharp, their ears held up and pricked. The disappearances had finally been noticed. Or had they always been noticed? He had to ask Twilight about this previous kill, this Applejack. He had seen behavior like this before. Usually after a well noted pony disappeared or died. It was panic. This Applejack had to have been well known to have caused this.

"It's amazing, isn't it?", inquired a voice to Desert's left. He looked at the voice. The owner was a tall black pony. Literally black other than his eyes, which were a disturbing, yet beautiful, gold. This pony also had a large scythe on his back.

"And you are?", Desert asked.

"Unnamed.", replied the pony. Desert felt a shiver go down his spine. This pony looked a lot like the creatures that destroyed his entire race.

"You call this panic amazing?", Desert asked.

"Of course. All it takes is a pinch of death, a crazed pony, and some paranoia. The perfect storm.", he responded.

"It is true. But this is a different kind of panic. This is neither panic over death, nor panic over life. This is panic over the unknown. They finally know something is wrong. But it seems as if it is too late to do anything about it. They don't know why these ponies keep disappearing. And if they don't know...", Desert started.

"Then the panic will continue.", the pony finished. "Exactly."

"All of this caused by something in Pinkie's head. Something called Rose Red. The look in her eyes tells me she thinks it's a hallucination of some sort, but I know differently. There is something in her head. Something that is going to destroy her.", Desert said coldly.

"Your knowledge serves you well Wanderer.", the pony said, chuckling.

"What did you just call me? How could you know that name? Very few have ever called me that.", Desert growled.

"I know many things, just as you do Wanderer. I am all around you, inside every home, on every bed, in every corner. You know me quite well actually. Your memory will come to you later, you and I both know it. But for now, you are on your own. Goodbye, Wanderer. All the best of luck to you!", the pony said. Then he was gone. Like a trick of the light. He was there and then he wasn't. Desert looked back at the town below. He saw Twilight talking fervently with another pony, who was white and had styled purple hair. He saw a mother scream and pick her child up just before he entered an alleyway. This town was in a lot of danger. And Desert was the only one who could stop it. One problem. How?

* * *

It was a matter of when Pinkie's defenses fell, Twilight thought. She was walking home, for night had fallen and the cold was beginning to seep in. This Rose Red timed each murder in times where Pinkie seemed weakest or defenseless. Each murder was mechanically perfect, never leaving a trace. So how were they, Desert and her, going to stop it.

"Why? Why now? It was so calm here. This isn't Discord, and it can't possibly be any kind of disease. I just need answers.", Twilight thought aloud. She heard leaves crunch behind her and she spun around, horn blazing. She saw two hooded figures following her. How long had they been there? "Hello?"

"Come with us, and maybe we won't kill this one here.", said the hooded figure on the right. The two figures separated and let a third figure through. It stepped into the light. It was Big Mac! He was cut and had lacerations on his back. He was shackled to the point where he could only shamble.

"Don't do what they say. I killed my sister, yes. I deserve to die.", Big Mac said quietly.

"No. You are not going to die. I will do what they ask. No one else is dying.", Twilight responded strongly. She walked in front of the hooded creatures and past Big Mac. Then she heard Big Mac grunt and she turned around in time to see him fling himself onto one of the hooded things. The force of the blow knocked the hood and cloak of the creature. It was a black, horse looking thing, with spikes down each leg and red eyes, mane, and tail. It growled.

"Oh you little bastard. You hare going to wish you didn't do that!", it screamed. It swung a hoof and hit Big Mac directly in the snout. In return, Big Mac leaned and started to crush the things face. It seemed he was winning when the other charged and hit him in the chest. He was sent flying into a tree. Twilight flinched when she heard a few bones break. The uncloaked one stood up and shook his head. "Serves you right, you worthless son of a bitch."

"You...you...", Twilight began, tears beginning to stream down he face.

"Killed him? So what. He was worthless. No matter. We only used him to get to you Twilight, or should I say, Dreamer.", said the cloaked one.

"No! NO! He...he can't be dead!", Twilight cried. She galloped over to him and listened to his heart. Nothing. She turned to the creatures. Her eyes began to glow. Her mouth opened and the air began to crackle around them.

"Master was correct.", said the uncloaked one.

"She is Chosen.", said the other. They both kneeled. Then everything went white.

* * *

Pinkie awoke from her sleep when a bright flash caught her vision. She looked to the source, which seemed to have originated from around Twilight's home. She climbed out of bed and walked down the stairs. Desert was already up and waiting. He seemed to be very loyal for reasons Pinkie didn't know. Together, they exited the house and walked to where the flash had come from. Others were staring out of their windows at the duo, wondering what they could be doing.

* * *

"She is breathing, but hardly.", said a masculine voice.

"What do we do!?", asked another voice, feminine this time. Twilight heard a sigh.

"I know! You see that tree? Give me two of the leaves. Then pick one of those red flowers.", explained the masculine voice. Twilight heard something get up and gallop off. She felt something against her chest. Then two hooves gripped her temples and pressed. Twilight felt pain but couldn't scream. She only twitched her leg. She heard something galloping back.

"Got them!", panted the feminine voice. Twilight heard leaves being crushed. Then she heard the sound of something blowing on something. After that, the strong smell of mint and the tangy smell of lime and oranges filled her head. Her eyes fluttered open. She saw Pinkie watching her with worry. Desert was at her side, his face as serious as ever. When Pinkie saw Twilight's eyes open, she squealed in delight. She kissed Desert on the neck, who in turn, turned away, most likely blushing.

"It worked. I still got it.", Desert said softly.

"It worked! I can't thank you more than I already have!", Pinkie trilled. She helped Twilight up.

"Thank you, so much.", Twilight said shakily. Her head pounded and her body ached, but still there was one feeling that was clear. She had a feeling of trust for Desert. This Desert was much different than the one who had threatened her earlier that day. She felt...no, she didn't. She couldn't feel that. At least not yet. Thinking about that feeling brought her back to another problem. Big Mac. "Desert! You have to help Big Mac!"

"Who?", Desert asked. He turned back to Twilight for explanation, but then needed none. He saw half of the limp body against an oak. Upon closer inspection, the body was intact, but the spine and neck were broken. This Big Mac had lived for no more than ten seconds after impact before he died. The back was the first to break, paralyzing him. Then the neck broke shortly after from shock, killing him.

"Is there anything we can do?", Pinkie asked.

"Please Desert.", Twilight cried. Desert looked deep into those shockingly stunning violet eyes. He sighed.

"Let me see what I can do.", he replied.

"Thank you. As long as you try, I am happy.", Twilight said, hope in her voice. Desert inspected the broken bones. Four broken vertebrae, a broken neck, and a broken clavicle. Desert knew what to do, but the ingredients were difficult to find. He began to second guess himself when he saw the ingredients everywhere around him. It seemed like the surprises never ended. He collected them and crushed them. All he needed was water. But there was none around.

"Crap. I only need water.", Desert thought aloud.

"I think I can help.", Twilight said. Her horn began to glow and the materials in his hoofs turned into paste. Perfect.

"Thank you.", Desert replied. He rubbed the paste into Big Mac's skin. He found a tough stick and sliced a small part of Big Mac's back open. Twilight held back her anger. Desert knew what he was doing. Desert then proceeded to rub in small bits of dirt accompanied by some tulip. After a few seconds, Big Mac groaned. He shot upwards and yelped.

"OW! What the hell!?", he cried out. When he saw Desert he jumped a little bit. "Wh-who are you?"

"It's fine Big Mac. He healed you.", Twilight said, galloping over to him. She nuzzled him. "That was brave of you to do that."

"No need. And I was fine, thank you.", Big Mac said softly.

"Your back was fractured in four places, your neck had been snapped, and your clavicle was dust. You were dead before you knew what hit you.", Desert said, rolling his eyes.

"Oh.", Big Mac replied. A shiver visibly went down his body. "Thank you for healing me. It kind of hurt."

"Don't mention it. It seems that this one has some passion for you.", Desert said, chuckling. He looked at Twilight.

"I...", Twilight began. Then she looked away and blushed. Big Mac cracked a small smile. Pinkie nudged Desert.

"I have to sleep more. I still feel horrible.", she said softly. Desert nodded and they both walked away, leaving Big Mac and Twilight alone.

"You didn't need to risk your life for me.", Twilight said softly once Pinkie and Desert were out of earshot.

"I didn't need to. But I didn't want those things to lay their hooves on you. I didn't even want to think about what they would do to you.", Big Mac replied.

"I...don't know how to respond to that.", Twilight said. She chuckled a little bit.

"And I can't tell you how to respond."

Then Twilight did the one thing she could think of. She bent her head upwards and kissed Big Mac on the cheek. He started and blushed a little at this. Twilight blushed even harder. It was so weird! _"Why did I do that?", _she thought, _"He is older than me!" _Then, Spike raced into view, eyes showing visible worry._  
_

"What the hell was that?", he asked.

"Nothing. Nothing at all.", Twilight replied, stealthily smiling at Big Mac.

* * *

"We must kill tonight!", Pinkie said, panicking.

"No! You are too weak!", Desert replied. Pinkie looked Desert in the eye.

"I can't hold her back any longer."

Desert sighed. "Okay, fine. Rose you win. So who do we kill."

"Someone who has answers."

* * *

The unicorn gasped for air once more. She was black and had red hair and eyes. Not like the creatures though. This was real.

"Are you ready to tell me?", Pinkie asked. Her voice was husky. They had been torturing this pony for almost an hour. She was strong and still had not broken.

"Please just tell us. It hurts me as much as it hurts you to do this.", Desert said. The pony, named Red Velvet according to Pinkie, looked at him and spat in his face. Desert looked at Pinkie and nodded. Pinkie flipped a switch. Red Velvet was dunked back into the tank of water, and the vise around her chest tightened. For the first time, Desert heard bones breaking. Red Velvet coughed out some blood, and then proceeded to try and gasp for air. Pinkie brought her up once more.

"You crazy bitch! You are killing me!", Red Velvet cried.

"I know.", Pinkie said, annoyance creeping into her voice. "Tell me now, and I let you live. Last chance. Any later and you still die."

"So you are giving me freedom?", Red Velvet asked.

"Give me the information now, and you will be free. Next time, I let you live, but you go back to prison where you belong. Any later, you will die anyway.", Pinkie explained coldly.

"Fine. I will tell you what I know. Rose Red is real for starters. And she is a killer. Obviously you can tell that too. But, she doesn't have a weakness. She is ruthless and will obey orders she is given. I don't know who this Master is, but I am pretty sure he or she has a lot of power. They would need it to control Rose. One more thing. Desert, you are the key to unlocking the mystery. You will find out soon how. I don't even know.", Red Velvet explained. Pinkie nodded and flipped the switch. Red Velvet screeched as she fell. The vise gripped even tighter and she drowned faster. Desert knocked Pinkie aside and brought Red Velvet back up. Her face was a bloody mess, but she was still alive. Desert made the vise loosen its grip enough so that Red Velvet tumbled out and onto the ground.

"What the hell Pinkie!?", Desert asked.

"I was destroying evidence along with an undeserving soul.", Pinkie responded. Desert slammed his hooves down on Red Velvet's chest a few times. After the fourth hit, Red Velvet coughed up bloody water. She gasped for air.

"Thank you.", she said weakly. Then she slowly got up and walked away. Pinkie watched her go, hatred in her eyes. When Red Velvet was gone, she turned towards Desert. Her eyes had gone navy blue again.

"Crap.", was the only thing Desert could utter before Rose launched her self at him.

"I TOLD YOU NOT TO DO THINGS LIKE THAT! THOSE THINGS ARE EXACTLY THE THINGS THAT ARE GOING PISS ME OFF!", Rose yelled. She had pinned Desert down. Desert planted two hooves on Pinkie's chest. All of a sudden, Pinkie/Rose began to shiver uncontrollably. The color drained very quickly from her body.

"And I told you not to hurt Pinkie. And you are doing that right now by over working her tired body.", Desert growled. Pinkie/Rose fell off Desert's hooves. The spots where his hooves had been were as blue as water. Desert put a hoof on Pinkie's chest and all of the color came back to Pinkie. She coughed and breathed heavily. Her eyes had returned to their normal light blue.

"T-Thank-k You.", she said, trembling. Desert helped her up.

"I am sorry that I had to do that. I prefer not to do those things.", Desert said sarcastically, but nicely also.

"She took over right as you flipped the switch. I didn't even have a chance to fight.", Pinkie said. She looked down and began to cry a little.

"Don't cry. Everything is going to be fine.", Desert said calmly. He lifted Pinkie's head up. Her eyes shone from the tears. "Terror and Pain go together. Alone they are horrible, together, they are hell. But, they are easily put down. Think of all of the times you and your friends did something courageous or nice. Think about all of the times you have saved the town, from what you tell me." Pinkie's eyes began to dry and she smiled.

"That meant a lot to me.", Pinkie said. She walked over to the tub of water and kicked it. It tipped and dumped its contents on her. Her hair was flattened against her, and she uttered a curse under her breath. She beckoned for Desert to follow her. Desert followed her out of the building, not looking back.

* * *

Twilight was sitting up in her bed. She was breathing very heavily. The past hour had been utter hell. She had felt as if she was drowning, but being crushed at the same time. But, this time it didn't end suddenly. It stayed and faded slowly. Someone had lived. They lived and escaped without dying. This was new. And it meant that Desert was most likely succeeding in blocking out Rose. This was good, and it was progress. But it was in no way over. The death was going to continue. And so was her pain.

* * *

Rarity was asleep when there was a knock on her door. But, she wasn't alone. Another pony got up from a chair. It trotted over to the door and opened it. No light was shed on the pony. A smaller pony stood there. She was drenched. She was black and had red eyes, mane, and tail.

"Thank Celestia! (I don't know what they say. Don't hate if I got it wrong.)", she said. She embraced the other pony, who stumbled back a little bit.

"Whoa! Okay. Um. You are so excited why?", asked the pony. She sounded feminine.

"That crazy bitch tried to kill me. I told her what I knew. But she almost killed me again. Then this other...handsome stallion saved me.", Red Velvet cried. A little gleam entered her eye when she spoke the last sentence.

"I wish I could help you, but I have no idea what you are talking about.", replied the pony. She pushed Red Velvet off.

"Can I stay here? I don't feel safe anymore.", asked Red Velvet.

"Rarity is going to be pissed, but sure. Who are you again?", asked the pony.

"My name is Red Velvet. I just survived the death of all. Beware thy who has eyes red as blood and soul dark as night, for the arrival has begun."

* * *

"What exactly are these again?", Desert asked. He was carrying large logs on his back. Pinkie was in front of him, carrying one. They were walking through a forest. The logs were light, and they seemed to talk to Desert.

"They are Mentalasee (Men-ta-lA-see) logs. I will explain later.", Pinkie responded. She lead Desert to a clearing. She put down her log and walked into the forest again. She reappeared with small sticks and twigs while Desert put down his two logs. She arranged the logs in a parallel pattern, then arranged the sticks and twigs in various patterns on the outside of the logs. She produced two rocks, which she hit together to make a spark. Old fashioned, but it seemed all of this was ritual based. A fire started on one of the sticks, and it slowly spread to the logs. Pinkie walked back to Desert. "Follow me. You will regret it if you don't." Desert followed Pinkie to about 20 feet away from the logs. There Pinkie stopped.

"Why are we out building a bonfire?", Desert asked.

"It is no regular bonfire. This is Mentalasse. It has certain affects on you, depending on your distance away. Too close, and our memory would be wiped. Too far, and we wake up completely changed. Now, at our distance, it lifts guilt.", Pinkie explained.

"So, we feel the fire, and our guilt is gone?", Desert asked.

"Exactly. It helps. Guilt comes after some point or another. Guilt is something Rose despises. So she forced me into the habit of burning Mentalasee. Soon you become hooked, like a drug. It becomes hard to go a single night without burning it. But, it still helps with guilt.", Pinkie said. Then, the slow moving fire finally hit the Mentalasee. The logs caught so fast there was a fireball. Desert instantly felt as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He couldn't help but smile. It was like he had been drugged. But he did feel a weight on his shoulder. Pinkie had scooted closer to him and had begun to lean on him. It was at that moment that Desert knew he couldn't deny something. It was something that had been there from near the beginning. Something that had grown over the past few days. Something that he wanted to believe wasn't true, but finally could deny no longer. He had fallen in love with Pinkie. Slowly but surely, step by step, he had fallen for this mare. And he liked it that way. He leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. She gasped slightly in surprise, then nuzzled Desert. He had to find a way to save the town. Now not for just the population, but for the future of him and Pinkie.


	2. Prologue

_**No Way Out: A Darker Side to the MLP Universe**_

Starring:

Some of the original MLP Characters

Ki Klon: A destructive race of aliens.

Shokain: A Spy amidst the enemy.

Night Mist: He who is great in heart.

The Righteous: They are not who you think they are.

Side Note: My facts might not be all correct. I don't know the show well, just enough to know some of the characters. Please do not berate me for getting facts wrong. They will be fixed in the next chapter as long as they are told to me nicely and politely. Thank and Enjoy No Way Out: A Darker Side to the MLP Universe.

Side Note 2: BTW, this takes place after the events of the last season of MLP: FiM. The characters are somewhat older now. Just so you are not confused.

* * *

Prologue:

Rainbow Dash awoke slowly this certain Sunday morning. This was not usual for her as she was usually an active pony but today was a good day. The sky was blue, the sun was shining, the birds were a-singin' and oh boy what a day to be had!

Dash's eyes suddenly turned cloudy. "Something is wrong, but I just can't put my hoof on it.", she said to no one in particular. "This day is a little to perfect." She frowned then shrugged her shoulders. "Bah, it's just the morning fatigue, maybe a little pie would help!" She trotted quickly to the door before the realization hit her. There was no pie anymore. At least pie from her friends. The best pie-maker in the world (in her view at least) had, as Spike had referred to it, gone around the bend. Her best friend, Pinkie Pie, had gone as what most ponies call insane about four days ago. It was if something inside her had simply gone SNAP! and then BANG! instant mental meringue. Now she was locked up in a tower on the outskirts of town so she wouldn't hurt anyone as she did when the SNAP! happened. Dash took no worry to the fact that the tower watched the entire town as this was not on her mental worry list. She chuckled to herself a little bit. " Well that was a plan ruined", she said and with that, she exited her house in the sky and flew down to the town. Same shit, different day she once heard a pony say. And so began a day that would change the lives of those who survived, forever.

* * *

Twilight woke up the exact opposite from Dash. One second she was dreaming and the next, she almost exploded out of her bed. But it wasn't excitement that had her make such an awakening, it was fear. The dream she had been dreaming was no dream at all. It was a flat out, no doubt, nightmare. She sat frozen on her bed for a minute as her eyes came in to focus. Then she jumped again as she realized Spike was at the end of the bed, watching her. She almost threw him against the wall that moment but then she realized he was watching her with worry, not admiration. Her heartbeat slowed back down but Spike still looked grim. "Something was wrong with that dream." Twilight thought out loud.

"What?", Spike asked. "I don't think that was a normal dream then."

"What happened?", Twilight asked.

"You screamed, no, wailed during your sleep", Spike said grimly, "You didn't stop either, you just kept on screamin' and wailin' in your sleep"

At this Twilight cocked her head and tried to process what she had just heard. It had been years since she had screamed in her sleep, the last time when she was much younger. She was 19 now, in human years at least, and she had screamed? The thought was preposterous but one look from Spike told her he wasn't lying.

"Oh" It came out a little louder than a squeak, almost a breath of air.

There was an awkward moment of silence between them before Spike reached out, patted one of Twilight's hooves then jumped off the post and headed downstairs where the smell of something good cooking was already wafting up. Twilight sat in bed for a few more seconds and then got out to brush her hair which was in huge disarray. With that finished, she headed downstairs to find Spike cooking. She admired him for a second as per the fact the he cooked so professionally and with ease. Then she sat down at the table waiting for the food to come. Finally, to break the silence she asked aloud "Spike, have you ever dreamed of death?"

Spike froze in place. "W-What? D-Death?" He was shocked to here Twilight say such a thing.

"You know. Death!. As in dying."

"No, I have never dreamed of dying. Isn't that a bad thing?" He returned to cooking as shaken as he was.

"No, no. Not you dying, like, other people dying. Friends, family, anyone?"

Spike thought for a second. "Yes, once. It was a disturbing dream, one I woke up from extremely fast. It is nothing but a fleeting memory now."

"That was what my dream was about. I was standing in the middle of the town, except something was wrong. The town was burning. The entire town was ablaze. All I heard was the fire and the endless screams of ponies who were dieing. There was nothing but those mind-bending screams that filled my ears. I did my best to cover them when I noticed a pony standing near the end of the sidewalk. He was beckoning me to follow him which I didn't do in my confusion. He was all white with these piercing silver eyes. He had a friendly aura, but was he looked serious and frightened as if by some unnatural horror. That is when I turned and saw the other pony. She was smiling and holding a piece of what looked like metal in one hoof and a porcelain plate in the other that read, The end is here my sweet, it is here and we are going with it. She was pink and red with these terrifying dark blue eyes that I felt were prying my soul. I didn't know what to do. I was just frozen in place as the fire advanced on me. I started to weep and the white pony ran over to my side and blocked my view from the pink and red one. He hoisted me onto his back and that is when I saw them. All of our friends: Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, and so many others burning on crosses on the side of town behind the pink and red one. The white one soothed me as best as he could while whisking me off to a place I never found out. The last thing I heard apart from the screams and cries for help was one thing that is now burned into my mind. I looked back and saw the pink and red pony smiling a glowing red evil smile. She then laughed this maniacal laugh that only a true master of horror could laugh. Then the dream ended as the white one said 'Don't listen to her Twi. She will corrupt you!'"

Spike now stood motionless, mouth agape, staring at Twilight. He then walked over to her and held her hoof in his two hands. "Twilight, that is not a dream you should be having. That is far more disturbing than I thought it was when I first heard you scream." He let go of her hoof and started to pace. He knew something Twilight didn't. Was it the fact that this dream was the same he had when Pinkie first went insane. Sort of. The real thing though was that Twilight never remembered her bad dreams. One problem, whenever she had a bad dream, something related to the nightmare happened. This was bad. The fact that she remembered the dream in perfect detail meant only one thing. This dream was no dream at all. It was Deja-Vu within a dream, and Deja-Vu within a unicorn meant only the worst could happen. Spike paced faster and finally ran up to the door and hit it as hard as he could. Twilight jumped a little at the loud bang that issued from the door.

"Spike, what has gotten into you. It is just a dream. I am pretty sure everything will be fine." Twilight smiled a little smile that would warm any heart, except on this particular day, it did not warm Spike's heart.

"Oh nothing, ONLY THE FACT THAT THE ENTIRE POPULATION OF EQUESTRIA MIGHT BE DOOMED TO DEATH BY THE UNKNOWN!"

"Spike, wha..."

"DON'T SPIKE WHAT ME! THAT DREAM WAS NO DREAM AT ALL TWILIGHT! IT WAS A DEJA-VU! AND DO YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS WHEN UNICORNS AS POWERFUL AS YOURSELF HAVE BAD DEJA-VU'S!"

"I-I don't know." Twilight had began to whimper as her mind was not prepared for this outrage.

"THOSE DEJA-VU'S COME TRUE! BY WHAT YOU ARE SAYING, WE ARE ALL HEADED INTO A LIFE OF HELL! MIGHT AS WELL BITE THE DUST NOW BECAUSE WE ARE ALL FU..." He was interrupted by a quiet but audible knock on the door. He closed his hands into fists and walked to the door. What he saw was a sight well needed. A recently done up rainbow hair-do showed through the crack in the door. Spike opened the door fully to confirm he saw Rainbow Dash sitting on the front porch area with a half confused, half scared to bloody hell face. She let out a small cry when she saw his face not expecting to see a pissed off little dragon this morning. Ignoring his face for her own sanity she galloped into the house and quickly hugged Twilight in something out of fear. She then backed up and asked in a quickly wavering voice, "Is that all true Twi, cause' I am scared now. It's all true isn't it. We are all going to die by the hooves of some mystery pony."

Twilight grew saddened by her friends fear but responded strongly, " I don't know Dash. Spike seems extremely sure in his conclusion. All I know is this, should this horrible event happen, I will protect you and my friends or I will die trying." Upon hearing this Dash embraced her friend once more then flew out the door, trying to find a way to get what she had just heard off her mind.

Spike stared after her and then turned to Twilight waiting for some sort of belittling and/or punishment for his words and actions. But Twilight just sat on her chair staring at Spike with something of surprise. She slowly got up and walked to him where with a little application of magic, she lifted him up and sat him upon a ledge in which she herself could climb onto. They sat like this for around 10 minutes not speaking or interacting with each other in anyway. Finally, Spike broke the silence.

"I don't know what else to say, I think I wasted my voice with all that shouting. I am really sorry for yelling at you Twilight. I didn't me..."

He was cut off by Twilight's soft purple eyes staring at him. She was crying as if she had done something horrible.

"Spike, I know everything now. That Deja-Vu isn't going to happen, it is happening as we speak. I just had to connect the dots.", Twilight said with a soft tone.

As if in answer the door flew open and Scootaloo walked in. She was obviously scared and was shaking like it was the middle of the winter.

"Twilight, you might want to see this." Scootaloo said with a wince.

The sight that greeted their eyes when they got outside and Scootaloo pointed toward a hill was something straight out of the nightmare. Sitting on the hill was Pinkamena Diane Pie. Her body and hair were streaked with a color of red close to blood. Her eyes had taken on a royal blue hue. And she was smiling. She was smiling at the town below her, in all its majesty and and complete obliviousness to the danger about to strike. Everypony seemed distracted and didn't even glance at Pinkie. Behind Pinkie was an army of some of the tallest creatures Twilight had ever seen. They were at least 40 feet tall and were armed to the teeth with machinery and weapons.

"What... the... hell... are... those... things...!", Twilight gasped.

"They're huge!", Spike wheezed.

"And they're moving.", stated Scootaloo.

Sure enough they were moving. But it was an embarrassingly slow pace. The time it would take for them to reach the town, they could evacuate the town. Twilight was preparing to do this when a gust of wind made them close their eyes. When they opened them the first thing they saw made Scootaloo jump and Twilight faint. The creatures had moved half a mile in the blink of an eye. Spike shook his head in disbelief.

"No way!" He breathed.

"Well, yes way." Scootaloo said coldly.

The next thing that happened was completely unexpected. The day suddenly went dark and the creatures advanced at the same speed as they did before. Then all hell and chaos broke loose in the town. Twilight regained consciousness at the time it happened, making sure she saw everything. All three ponies watched in horror as a piece of house sent haywire by an explosion speared a mare straight through the heart and pinned her to a wall. Scootaloo was gone in a flash, using her small but powerful wings to propel herself forwards to a group of escaping ponies.

"Celestia help us!", Twilight cried, not expecting a response.

Then a huge branch over Twilight and Spike exploded, sending flaming shrapnel every... and then landed directly on Twilight, pinning her under its weight.

"AAAAgghhhhhhhhh!", Twilight screamed, and began to struggle under the log.

"Twilight!", Spike cried and rushed to his friends aid.

Spike tried to lift the log off Twilight, but to no avail. He tried to burn it with his flames, but to the same effect. So, Spike sat with his friend hoof in hands, waiting for the fire to do its work. After about 30 seconds, a tall man appeared, as if out of nowhere. He was about 8"6' and had a huge hammer in one hand and a sharp sword on his back. He raised his hammer, aiming directly at Twilight's head. Spike screamed for him to stop. Then the man swung... and demolished the log on top of Twilight. He then promptly disappeared as fast as he had come. Twilight stood up and shook of pieces of wood, somewhat burned but still okay. Spike walked over to her and hugged her. Twilight returned the hug. They both watched together as a once prosperous town was destroyed beyond recognition in under 10 minutes. Then the creatures left and all was quiet except for the burning and a voice that rung out, heard to all who had lived.

"My name is Rose Red!", the voice yelled. "I am your eternal and anarchical leader!"

Then a demonic laugh floated over the hills and plains of Equestria as the creatures and Rose Red continued their reign of terror.

Spike and Twilight stayed in the town, finding an underground shelter underneath a intact house. From that point onward, Twilight forced herself to forget about magic. In her view, it brought on this horrible event. Every morning Twilight would cast a spell upon herself which hid her horn and made her forget everything about magic until the next morning where the cycle repeated. They lived 2 months this way before venturing back to the surface. They were never prepared for the events to come after 2 weeks had passed.

_**-End of Prologue-**_

* * *

_**I hope you enjoyed this morsel of what is to come. Please contact me if you have any questions and/or concerns. This story will contain at least 6 chapters, each of them much longer than the prologue. I would really like feedback on this be it good or bad, either helps me in continuing this dark tale. Thank you and Have a nice day!  
**_


	3. Chapter 1: Something New

_**Chapter 1: Something New**_

_**(Side Notes: Expect these every so often for updates to the story that should be read so you are not confused.)  
**_

_**Side Note: This takes place 2 and 1/2 months after the events of the prologue.  
**_

* * *

Alex was like any other 19 year old boy. He had a normal family, went to a normal school, and lived a normal life. His mom was a principal and his dad was an engineer, so nothing eventful ever happened. If there was one thing abnormal about Alex it was his height. He was much taller than most his friends, standing at a whopping 6'8". He went to work at a grocery store earning a good $20 per hour because of his hard and dedicated work. He lived in a small city just out of Houston. He had most of the new things that came out, like an Xbox 360 and an IPhone 4. He did well in school and had a great appreciation among the town for his kind and caring heart. He was one person that you would expect to always be lucky and have good things.

One day, he came back from work early because of the approaching Christmas holiday. He lived with his parents but was preparing to move out; he was packing things as he had only about a month of hard earned salary left to buy an apartment home. On this particular day his little sister, Kate, was not home so he went to his room out of boredom. He had just sat down on his bed when he heard a sound like shuffling paper. He looked and upon his desk was book. He jumped a little bit at this sight.

"What the hell?" He asked out loud.

He approached the book. It had no cover on it so he flipped it open. The pictures inside were gruesome and seemed to be hand drawn by a very good artist. All of them showed a mass slaughter of what appeared to be horses and ponies alike. The drawings seemed childlike in the sense that these drawings showed horses of color and not of the regular hues like brown, black, and white. There was another shuffling sound behind him and he turned to find a paper on his nightstand. It read:

"Hello Alex. I know you but you do not know me. I am giving you an order that shall be obeyed on the threat of death. If you open the door to your room you will not find a hallway, but a portal leading to another universe. You have two minutes to enter this portal. If you should, your room will disappear and you will be forgotten about until you return. Should you not enter the portal in the allotted time, your room will implode, and you will be mourned in death. Follow my orders and live, or disobey them and die. The choice is yours Alex. Choose wisely."

"Holy crap!", Alex thought.

He approached his door and opened it to find that the person who wrote the note was not kidding. The was a swirling black and blue vortex leading out of his room. It didn't require much time to think. His choices were set out for him. So, Alex walked up to the portal and prepared to enter it.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye world", Alex said with a chuckle and he jumped into the portal.

It wasn't some instantaneous kind of thing where you stepped in on one side and came out the other. No, Alex literally flew into and through the portal. He saw all kinds of disturbing things, mostly the same pictures he saw in the book. And then, it was over. He hit the ground and blacked out.

* * *

When Alex awoke, he found himself lying on a dirt and gravel road. He got up to look around but instantly fell to the ground again.

"What in the name of god?", Alex looked at his hands... but no longer were they hands, in there place was now white hooves.

"Aggghhh!", Alex screamed. He got up and found he was in what seemed to be a demolished town. Judging by the houses and building. It wasn't very modern. The dirt and gravel road suggested at wagons instead of cars. The building styles seemed more old fashion, most of them shack looking with the exception of a few buildings, which looked like miniature versions of the white house. The street he was on was not densely populated by buildings and seemed to be like a park avenue. He found a window and saw that he was a pony now. He was all white but he couldn't see much else because he saw mostly right through the glass. He turned left and found his heart just stopped. Sitting at the end of the sidewalk was a pink and red mare. She was creepy and she was smiling this demonic smile that made Alex feel as if he was trapped in an ice cube. He could hear her saying something so he tried to listen.

"Well, well, well, it seems as if the surprises will never end!", She said in a cheery voice.

"Uhhhhh, I, uhhhhhhhhh...", Alex murmured. This was all so confusing. He blinked to make sure this was real, and then the mare was gone. Well, she wasn't gone, she simply moved to another location, this time, behind a ruined arch. She turned around to face Alex and winked and then disappeared behind the arch.

"What the hell is going on around her...!?", Alex was interrupted by a powerful blow to his side that knocked him into a conscious state again. He turned to the side of the blow ready to hurt whoever did it, only to find a purple mare a little smaller than he was. He anger passed as quickly as it came.

"Hello?", Alex asked.

"No questions. Follow me. Everything will be answered when we get to where we are going.", the mare responded coldly.

"Okay, I guess?", Alex muttered following the mare into an alleyway. They turned a corner and Alex found himself in a neighborhood. The purple mare crossed the street and entered a house, Alex right on her heels.

"Wait here.", she said once they were inside the house. She walked up to a piece of stone and did a complex sign on it using here front two hooves. The stone split into two halves and opened up to a tunnel.

"Follow me, we are almost there.", she said and entered the tunnel.

"Okay...Boss!", Alex tried to joke.

The mare gave him a look that stopped anymore jokes from coming out. Alex entered the tunnel and in a daze passed the mare. He walked to the entrance of an underground bunker it seemed. He pushed open the door to be greeted by a small purple and green dragon. The dragon's expression went from happy to confused to angry in a matter of seconds.

"WHO are YOU!", The dragon asked impolitely. He sounded a tad Scottish.

"Not your business", Alex replied and tried to step over the dragon. Instead he got a fireball to the hoof and jumped back startled.

"Leave this place, NOW!", The dragon screamed.

"Spike, leave him alone. He is a... friend of sorts.", The mare called from right behind Alex. Spike did not seem to happy about letting a stranger into this place but seemed happier now that he saw the mare.

Alex walked into a huge room. The ceiling was higher than he thought hey had gone down. The tunnel must have been deeper and steeper than it felt. The room was about 2,000 sq. feet and had distinct doors leading into other rooms. This room had a kitchen of sorts, a table, a sitting area and was lit by extremely bright candles. Alex turned to face the mare who was closing the door to the makeshift home as it seemed.

"Now can you explain to me exactly what is going on?", Alex asked.

The mare looked at Spike than seemed to think for a second before she finally spoke.

"My name is Twilight Sparkle. The name of this town is Ponyville. Well it used to be. About 2 and 1/2 months ago, my friend Pinkie Pie went insane. She was locked up in a tower on the edge of town but managed to escape the tower. She found a race of aliens that was mechanically advanced in every way compared to us. They had weapon's and machines on theirs side. She became the leader of this race and used them to destroy this town. She then moved on to destroy everything in Equestria. Not too many of us are left. The week of this attack has become know as The Assault. My friend, Pinkie, changed before she started this whole thing. Her insanity carried to her appearance. She painted red all over herself and changed her eyes to a dark blue color. She goes by the name Rose Red now."

"Wait, did you say red streaks and dark blue eyes?", Alex asked warily.

"Y-Yes?", Twilight responded.

"Oh boy", Alex sighed.

"She is here, isn't she.", Spike asked nonchalantly.

"Uh-huh", Alex nodded.

"Oh dear. This is not good. Maybe she knows of our location. What would we do then!? Oh boy, oh dea...", Twilight was interrupted by a huge BANG! on the wall opposite her. The the wall exploded revealing Rose leaning against a wall, acting innocent.

"No,no,no,no,no...", Twilight repeated over and over under her breath.

"Well hello friends! What a pleasant surprise to see you Twilight. I thought you had gone with the others!", She pushed off the wall and trotted towards the group of 2 ponies and the dragon.

"What are you doing here Rose", Twilight growled, trying not to act scared.

"Oh I pity the one who cries wolf when there is none. You mustn't be scared Twilight. Or are you and you are afraid to show it. Let us see if we can get a little persuasion into that head of yours now.", Rose trilled. She raised a hoof and pointed it at Twilight, who began to rise off the floor. She started to choke on some force that Rose was using on her.

"Fight back will you. You have magic and you know how to use it. Kill me. Right here. Right now. Get it over with then!", Rose yelled.

"I... don't know.. know what you're... talking about...Agghhh!", Twilight screamed as Rose apparently tightened her grip upon Twilight.

"Enough!", Alex cried, and he rammed into Rose, launching her into a wall. She got up unscathed.

"T-Th-Thank-k y-you.", Twilight moaned as she hit the ground.

"You," Rose said turning to face Alex, "You would make a good servant. You're strong, smart, and definitely witty."

Alex smirked, then started to chuckle, then broke out laughing.

"What are you laughing at!", Rose retaliated, her giddy look replaced with anger. Twilight and Spike looked at each, hoping for the best.

"It is the way you hide your pain. I am very perceptive you know. You act unhurt, but by the way you lean to the left means that you broke a rib on the right side. Your eyes are darting around quickly, suggesting at a small concussion, and your snout is scratched and bleeding but it blends in with you're skin, am I not correct?", Alex said proudly.

Rose was shocked to hear this, as she knew he was spot on. She turned to face away from him and to face directly at Spike. Spike gulped and tried not to shiver as those eyes searched him for any form of weakness. Finding none they returned to his eyes.

"Spike, you are nothing compared to what you could be. Come with me. I will free you from the bonds placed upon you by this bitch! You will never be given another command, forced upon a project you do not want, or put to work on something unnecessary", She glared at Twilight when she spoke the last few sentences. Either Twilight ignored her or she was too dazed to here what Rose said.

"Rose, I will never follow in your hoof steps. You are a murderous witch that doesn't give a care in the world about anyone's feelings except yours! You are guaranteed to live a horrible should we ever get the time and forces to to defeat you and your army!", Spike was beginning to shake and he seemed about ready to fly straight into a blind rage.

"You.", Alex asked inquisitively of Rose, "You are the cause for all the pain and suffering for these poor people? Have you ever thought of the horrible consequences for your actions? Are you a mindless killer or an extremely clever perfectionist?"

"Oh what such wonderful questions.", Rose said making sure to watch Twilight and Spike as she spoke. "Questions that I have the answers for. Yes, of course, and you have never seen someone more meticulous, more tricky than I!"

"Is this the work of a child or the mind of a lunatic that we are speaking to?", Twilight asked cautiously.

"Neither! It is the mind of a purist, one who is to cleanse this world of its contaminated population!" Rose sung. She began to walk to the hole that she made in the wall.

"Where do you think you will be going Rose. You have nowhere to stay. You are an outcast, a lunatic, a crazed psycho. You are feared by most, what more could you want. You have reaped your final reward, Rose. You will be nothing but a nightmare carried on by the wind when you come face-to-face with me again. You will die by my hands... hooves if it is the death of me!" Alex cried. He watched Rose approach the hole and turn around.

"Let's see if you can look me in the eye, if you are so confident." Her gaze fell upon Twilight who turned away as if being splashed by cold water. Next was Spike, who looked at the floor and scuffed his feet. Finally she looked upon Alex. Royal Blue locked with Light Chrome. Rose looked away in disgust and entered the hole. With a wave of her hoof the wall began to rebuild itself. As the final piece was about to set in, she turned around winked directly at Alex. Then she was gone. Alex was about to check on Twilight when heard Rose's voice in his head. He froze where he stood and his eye's glazed over.

"Remember, I will always be right here.", Rose said seductively. Alex got a mental picture of Rose pointing to her head.  
"I will hear your every word, see your every thought, and control your emotions like a puppet!" With this, she clicked her tongue and Alex fell to the ground, knocked unconscious by an unseen force. This woke Twilight out of her daze and she ran over to Alex.

"Spike! He has fallen! We must help him.", She said. She glanced at his side and found his Cutie Mark. It showed a moon hovering over a lake completely covered by mist. "Misty Night.", She shook her head. "Night Mist." With that she, with the help of Spike, lifted him into a room and set him down on a bed. She left before her heart shattered by the sight of Night convulsing on the bed. Night Mist was no longer there. He was gone she thought. She was all alone again. The sound of laughter rung out once more over Equestria, the laugh of someone who has triumphed.

* * *

Rose Red was dreaming. She was falling. Falling and Falling and Falling. Voices were heard all around her. Then one broke out into prose and then joined by the rest to form a commanding dark voice.

**Twilight is Coming**,  
**Night is Falling.**

**A quest for running,  
While the bell is tolling.  
**

**A child between them,  
of ultimate power.  
**

**A shining gem,  
From Which You Cower!**

**Your reign of terror is going to end,**  
**of which your mind will be freed.**

**From their child they will send,**  
**A deathly song will be your creed.**

**Banished the horrors will be,**  
**from this wrecked world.**

**Just you wait and see,  
At the bottom of an endless pit you will be curled.  
**

**A horrible fate to this world will come,  
A product of your own stupidity.  
**

**The future looks glum,  
Assure your mind with validity!  
**

Then the voices broke up and there were sounds of laughter and crying, whispering and yelling all around Rose. Red particles began to form below, grouping up to make eyes with crimson irises that bore into to Rose's mind. She screamed and hit the ground. With that, she woke up in a panic.

"Where am I? Who am I? What happened to this town? Why is everything dark and not light and happy?", Rose cried out. She realized with a shock she had no memory of what happened for the past 3 months. She tried to remeber what she could. Her name was Pinkamena Diane Pie, she had many friends, including Rainbow Dash and Twilight, and she was a happy and outgoing person. But why was the town ruined? Where was everyone.

"Hello?", she called out. A voice responded, not outside, but inside her head.

"I am here. I will always be here. Your body is weak under my power. You are worthless, a piece of pink, giddy trash.", said the voice. Pinkie realized with horror this was the voice of Rose Red, the same voice she heard the day she blacked out. Now she knew what had happened. She had not blacked out. Her mind had been taken over. She had been controlled and used for one purpose. And that purpose had not been fully served. This world was not fully cleansed. There were survivors, and all were supposed to die.

"Never again!", Pinkie yelled with all her strength. She started to sing, a song she knew would block out Rose for the time being. "The stars are shining, and the wind is blowing."

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!", Rose screamed.

Pinkie knew it was working. "A song on every lip, and a smile on every face. Minds filled with merry and joy, hearts aglow with cheer and kindness. Baby oh what world we live in!"

"AAAAGGGGHHHH!", Rose shrieked. Pinkie felt Rose's presence slipping away and her control weakening. She used this chance to take control of her body again. She took a cursing Rose Red and locked her up in a mental prison.

"Goodbye, Rose., Pinkie said with a smile.

"YOU CAN'T KEEP ME IN HERE FOR EVER! I WILL GET OUT, AND WHEN I DO, I WILL KILL EVERYTHING YOU CARE ABOUT! AND THIS TIME, YOU WILL SEE IT ALL HAPPEN! I WILL FORCE YOU TO WATCH THE DEATH OF EVERYTHING YOU EVER LOVED!", Rose was screaming so loud Pinkie had to cover her ears, though it was obviously no use. "JUST YOU WAIT, YOU LITTLE PINK BITCH! YOU ARE NOTHING, A PAWN IN MY PLAN! YOU ARE JUST A SOLDIER, A MESSENGER EVEN, TO CARRY OUT MY ORDERS! LISTEN YOU WHORE, LISTEN WELL! HEED ME OR DIE YOU WEAK JOKE OF A SLUT!", Rose did not seem to stop, but those were the last things Pinkie heard before she closed Rose out. Pinkie began to cry. She was responsible for the deaths of so many, the demise of innocent, defenseless children, her favorite things in the world. So many things done wrong with no rights to correct them. It was then she realized that she had been stumbling through the town the entire time and had bumped into something. She looked up to find a pony staring down at her. He was blue and had his red hair spiked up in the back.

"H-Hello?", Pinkie asked.

The pony continue to stare. Suddenly he began to change. His red mane was replaced by a black one along with his skin, which also turned black. His green eyes turned crimson, and white spikes grew along his back and down each leg. His tail turned crimson and his eye whites turned black. Teeth were replaced by razor sharp fangs. He licked his chops.

"Hello there! You were once our master but you have awoken now. We can't have you ruining us by revealing how to defeat us. I am afraid I must kill you now.", the thing spoke. Pinkie was frozen in horror. She closed her eyes, waiting for it to be over. He opened his mouth and started to descend on Pinkie. She could smell his breath... then he was suddenly gone. Her eyes opened. She found a white pony in his place. He had a concerned look on his face. She looked to the side and saw the creature was out... cold. The pony helped her up. He was taller than her and had these gorgeous silver eyes. His cutie mark showed a moon hovering over a lake completely covered by mist. His mane and tail were the same silver as his eyes. Pinkie was speechless.

"You are tired. Let me help you. I will lead you to shelter.", the pony said.

Pinkie and the pony walked side-by-side until they reached a house. It was small and mostly intact. He lead her inside and to a room. He lifted her up and set her down upon a bed. They looked at each other until Pinkie went to sleep. When she woke up in the morning he would be gone. The last thing she heard before she closed her eyes was, "My name is Night Mist. I will never hurt you,"

* * *

Back in the underground home, Night Mist was asleep. He had been for the past two days. He began to convulse on his bed. Twilight was by his side for the whole ordeal, crying. She talked into his ear to try and wake him up. His eyes were moving and he was talking saying something about someone being tired.

"Your name is Night Mist. Night, please wake up. It is killing me to see you like this.", Twilight cried.

As if in response Night said, "My name is Night Mist. I will never hurt you."

* * *

**Four Days Later**

* * *

Alex woke up for the first time after he blacked out. He had no idea what day it was, or how long he had been asleep, but a nagging thought that occurred was that his name was Night Mist. He found himself on a bed. He got out of the bed to move but fell in exhaustion. He was extremely hungry. He walked down a short hallway, leading a the main room. The realization hit him as soon as he entered the room. He knew where he was and what had happened. He peered around the corner. Spike was sitting at the table, engrossed in a large book. Twilight Sparkle was standing in the kitchen using her mouth and hooves to stir what smelled like pasta. Alex smiled. He started to sneak up on Twilight, planning on surprising her. Right as he stepped behind Spike though, he stepped on a piece of loose twig, making a soft Snap! that Spike noticed. Alex froze, and Spike turned around. Alex smiled as if to act innocent, but something was up. Spike looked around as if to try and find the source. After a few seconds, he turned back to his book and shrugged. Alex was confused. Spike had not seen him, he knew it for sure. When Spike looked at him, it was always in the eye. Dumb Luck? No, it had to be magic. He was white against a brown background. He should have been easily seen. He shook his head and continued to sneak up on Twilight. When he was right next he saw her eyes were closed. Perfect!

"Hello, Twi!", Alex said cheerily.

Twilight shrieked and fell backwards. When she saw it was Night, she hopped up and gave him a huge hug followed by a kiss.

"You're Alive! I thought you were dead! It is truly a Christmas miracle!", Twilight trilled still hugging him.

Christmas!? Alex remembered leaving his world 7 days ago. Had he been out for 7 days? How was he not dead?!

"Well, yeah. What happened?', Night inquired curiously.

"Not much really. Spike went through a lot of trouble trying not to celebrate. He hates you, you know. With the bottom of his heart for all I am concerned.", Twilight responded, finally letting go.

"Yeah I know that."

Night made a sly grin at Spike, unnoticed by him because of his interest with his book.

"You have a plan for revenge?"

"Oh yes, now watch me carefully. If I concentrate enough...there!"

Twilight was shocked. One second Night had been standing there, the next, POOF!, gone like a puff of smoke.

"Can you hear me?"

No response.

"Hmmmm..."

Twilight jumped as Night returned in a flash, literally, a flash of light.

"Did you hear me?", he asked.

"N-n-nnn-No.", Twilight responded, just about ready to faint.

"Bummer. Well, onward towards our objective my grandfather used to say. Wait... What exactly is our objective?" Night questioned himself.

"To stop the alien forces from destroying all of Equestria?", Twilight responded, now a little more alive.

"That's Right!", The white pony exclaimed. "Now, where to start." Night began to search his mind for any clues as for what to do. Then, a sound familiar to Twilight began to emit from Spike. Except, something was terribly wrong. Spike wasn't just delivering a letter, he was having some serious side effects. He was coughing out blood by the spoonful, and his color was quickly draining.

"Spike!", Twilight shrieked and galloped toward her friend. Night simply just shook his head and smiled, walking towards the seen unfolding in front of him. Finally a note came out and Spike passed out in relief. It had blood on it, but not Spike's. This blood was dry. The paper also seemed in horrible condition. It was crumpled, burned, and looked as if something acidic and brown ad been poured on it. No wonder it gave Spike so much trouble. It read as such:

**"Hello my faithful student. As you can tell by this letter, I am still alive. To this da (Blood covers this part of the letter) rce is gone or faltering. My group has not seen (Blood spatter.) few weeks. I am ill but still going strong. But we are not safe. Something else is here. Something dark, ancient, and evil. WE NEED HELP! If there is anywhere, anywhere safe you can bring us to, please reply. If not, give me some kind of way to know if you are alive or not. Please, I (Blood) ou.**  
** Yours Truly, Princess Celestia."  
**

Twilight put the paper down, surprise, happiness, sadness, and anxiety all clashing together on her face.

"She's alive. Almost 3 months, and she is still alive!", Twilight laughed. She grabbed Night by the hooves and started jumping around.

"Around and Around the tree we go. Spirits of giddy and glee!", Night thought to himself as they danced around the room. After a short time Twilight grew tired and fell to the floor dizzy but still laughing. She then grew serious and started to write on a piece of paper, her mouth moving the quill in something close to mastery. Alex's mind corrected itself right at that moment and a dark and scary realization hit him. He just had to connect the dots. Alien species arrives. They destroy everything. Capital, or should I say, castle, is attacked first. Princess lives in castle and rules the land. Princess is now ill to the point of coughing up blood. Paper appears old and destroyed **AFTER** it is delivered.

"It all makes sense now!", Night shouted. Twilight looked up from her writing, confused.

"These aliens don't just want to destroy the world, they are going to rip apart this entire Universe, starting with the Strongest Link.", Night's voice trailed away into a whisper. Twilight dropped the quill and simply stared at Night.

"Wha-What?", Twilight didn't understand. What did he mean by the strongest link. Entire Universe?

As if Night had read her mind, he answered both these questions.

"The strongest link being your princess and the entire universe as in, there are more than one.

"So what you are saying is that these aliens are from another universe, and because they are not from this universe, this universe is starting to decay starting with the most sentient life form?", Twilight responded. Night ran up to her and kissed her, sending a feeling of nothing but utter happiness through her. It was as if his kiss promoted happiness and well being. She fell to the floor the moment his lips left hers. Spike woke up and saw them kissing and rage instantly screamed through his body.

"You are a genius! You might have proved theories that scientists have thought were nothing but dreams, hopes and wishes never to be answered!", He lifted her up and carried her to the table, where he sat her down. "Twilight Sparkle, we are about to embark upon an adventure! It is going to be filled with danger, excitement, and lots of alien ass-kicking."

"Well then don't forget me.", A familiar voice floated in.

"No...", Twilight's eyes lit up like the sun.

"I'm baaaackkk!", the voice called. A brown pony with blue eyes walked in through the entrance to the house.

"Who in the bloody-knuckles me grandad used to play are you.", Night said, unaware he sounded a tad bit crazy.

"He's the Doctor!", Twilight trilled and ran over and hugged the new-comer.

"Doctor Who?", Then, Night's memories from Alex began to pour in. The Doctor. Doctor Who! Night laughed and trotted over to the Doctor, shaking his hooves vigorously. Spike was so dazed by the sudden appearance of the Doctor he completely forgot about his urge to end Night, right here, right now. "So, so, so nice to meet you Doctor. This universe has it's perks, I can tell already!"

"And you are...?", Doctor asked, quite intrigued by this pony's character.

"Night Mist. But people back home call me Alex. My God! How do you do this!? Traveling between not just the stars, but between entire dimensions, whole universes!"

"Nice to meet you Alex." The Doctor smiled and looked down at Twilight. "Well hello again little miss, you look much more mature now. You look like a grown mare. Glad to see you again!", He reached down and patted Twilight's head.

"Doctor, we need your help. You obviously over-heard what I was saying to Twilight. I know you can deliver, so my question is, can you package, if you get my gist.", Night said coolly.

"I can package any day. 7 days a-week, 24 hours a day! Geronimo!" The Doctor began to jump around the room, Twilight clapping in a corner similarly to an Irish beat. Night joined in with the clapping as the Doctor jumped around, wielding his sonic screwdriver like the way Twilight held the quill. Everything was happy in that little shelter. Even Spike joined in the festivities, challenging the Doctor to see who could do a better Irish jig. But all was not happy outside. Celestia was dieing a slow, painful death. Unstoppable even by magic. Those who had survived were slowly dieing of hunger and thirst as supplies grew low. Twilight needed to act, and she needed to act fast. Things were going to hit the fan soon if she did not reply.

"Where are you my student.", Celestia called weakly, "We need your help. Help us, we are dieing." She coughed up blood and spat it to the side. Things were going bad and they were only going to get worse. A dark force was watching them. A force that was terrifying in its appearance and great in its power. "Oh please hurry, my sweet Twilight, before we are nothing but skeletons."

From the hill above the camp, a pony watched. Or at least, he looked like one. He was the same as Pinkie had saw, black and evil. And he was hungry. In his eyes, there was nothing but free food down there. They were weak, tired, and naive to what they faced. He licked his lips. Soon enough. Soon enough...

* * *

**Sorry about it being still somewhat short. Thought this was the best place to end this chapter.**

**For those who are asking about the romance, it isn't really like ROMANCE romance. It is simply more like love for another. And for those who are tired of Human-to-Pony, or Pony-to-Human, I don't FUCKING care! If you hate it so much don't read it you dumb asses.  
**

**For those who are enjoying this so far, Have a nice day. Expect Chapter 2 to have at least 10,000 words. I hope to have it released by Sunday the second of December.  
**


	4. Chapter 2: A Different Plan

**No new side notes this chapter. Hope you are enjoying!**

* * *

Pinkie awoke woke a start. It had been 4 days since she had been lead to safety by the white pony. She was having a bad dream when a voice interrupted it, causing it to instantly vanish. Gone, as if the voice's words were law.

"Whaaa...?", Pinkie said, shaking her head. She was out in the middle of the street...again. Where was she this time? She was in the middle of a cul-de-sac, the houses run down and dirty except for one. It was a yellowish tan with a red roof. Something moved to her right and let out a little shriek.

"Huh!?", Pinkie gasped. "AGGGHHHH!" Staring up at her was an eye. A literal eye with an iris and everything. Pinkie jumped and ran behind a piece of house. She peeked around the corner and the eye was gone. Her heart was racing and her breathing was fast. Then she heard a sound. The sound of a door opening, sounding extremely similar to a... jail door.

"No!", Pinkie searched her mind and sure enough a pale form was started to crawl out of a cell in her mental prison. Her color was pale but her dark blue eyes had not faded. She looked at Pinkie and smiled.

"Hello there beautiful!", Rose said smirking. Pinkie stifled a scream. The fact that she even had the idea to scream seemed to partially heal Rose, bringing back some of her color and allowing her to now limp towards Pinkie. Pinkie ran out of the room and slammed the door, locking it with her mind. She had just started to breath normally again when a hoof burst through the glass on the door. "Ahhh give me a break sweetheart! Mommy's home!", Rose trilled. This time Pinkie did scream, healing Rose that much more.

* * *

Even among the festivities of the underground house hold, the scream was heard. It pierced through the walls and did nothing but nearly deafen them all.

"What the hell was that!", Night said, stopping his clapping quickly.

"It sounded like a scream to me.", Doctor put in helpfully.

"Well no crap, Sherlock.", Spike retorted. Twilight only gazed at the ceiling trying to judge where the scream had come from.

"I am going to see who it was. It sounded really close to us.", Night said, already stepping out the door. No one moved to come along so he continued up the tunnel. When he got to the top and exited the house, he saw something that he never thought he would see. Rose was lying in the fetal position in the middle of the street, rolling around and screaming and... crying? All thoughts of killing her left his mind and he raced over to her.

"Rose!? Rose!?", Night called, looking into her eyes.

A voice. Higher toned then Rose Red. Her eyes had changed to a light blue. "Help...me...", She cried. Then in Rose's voice, "Leave this piece of trash alone. She is mine, and she will never get rid of me!"

"JESUS! What the hell is going on!", Night yelled. He picked up Rose and threw her to the ground, knocking her out partially. This seemed to disturb whatever was going on inside her head and she stop moving, resorting to unconscious murmuring.

"What the hell is going on!", Night once again yelled. Rose turned her face up to him. It was contorted into a face of agony and despair.

"Well, you see, my mind is not exactly healthy. I believe there is something living inside it. Something that has more power than I could even begin to imagine.", The same high pitched voice. This was definitely not the Rose he wanted to kill. He opened his mind a little, hoping that maybe salvation had come.

"I... think I understand, but only just enough. You need to come back with me, when you are safe, you may explain it to me more.", Night started walking into a house.

"Your name is Night Mist am I not correct?", Rose asked.

Night turned around at a speed comparable to a snake striking. "How do you know that. I only found out my own name 3 or 4 days ago."

"You saved me one night. You saved me from this thing, I dunno what it was, but it was big and scary and you knocked it out...cold.", Rose said, as if trying to get Night to remember.

Night approached Rose. "So what you are saying is that wasn't a dream?"

"What?"

"I dreamed of saving you. You were getting attacked by this horse looking creature that was about to decapitate you with it's fangs. I knocked it to the side and led you to shelter. Then my dream ended a few minutes after you went to sleep.", Night said, eying Rose curiously.

"That is exactly what happened. Except at the end, before I went to sleep, you said 'My name is Night Mist. I will never hurt you.'"

Night simply shook his head. "This is all so confusing! Just follow me. I will get you somewhere warm and comfortable.", He turned around and headed back into the house, Rose getting up and soon at his heels. He did some kind of complex sign on a stone slab that made it split in half and open. It lead into a long and dark tunnel which seemed almost endless. They finally reached a door in which Night simply knocked. A sliding part of the door opened revealing glowing green eyes. They registered Night and the sliding part closed. A second later the door opened, revealing Spike and letting light shine on Rose. He processed as quickly as he could, but it was too late. Night and Rose pushed past him and into the house.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!", Spike shouted at Night.

"Giving shelter to a lost soul.", Night replied, not even acknowledging Spike.

"Uh, Night, It appears someone followed you in here." Twilight whispered, obviously terrified of the "visitor".

"I know.", he said, now walking towards the Doctor.

"Yes...", The Doctor asked as they approached.

"Something is wrong with her. Her head, not healthy.", Night answered, pointing to Rose.

The Doctor understood immediately. He pulled out his sonic screwdriver and scanned Rose.

"My friend, it appears that you have got something inside your head. Disease, entity, disorder, I can't tell. But there is something inside your head sweetheart, that's for sure. And it is slowly killing you. Rose Red, you need help, and quickly. And I am afraid even I won't be able to help. I can sure as hell guarantee that if she isn't cured soon, she will die."

"Who is Rose Red?" Rose asked.

Twilight and Spike had both their mouths drop to the floor. The Doctor cocked his head in confusion. Night simply stood staring at her.

"My name has never been Rose Red. It was always Pinkie Pie, thrower of the best parties and bringer of happiness!", Pinkie said throwing her front two hooves in the air and jumping really high. Then her eyes glazed over and she hit the ground...hard. She looked up, her light blue eyes changed to dark blue and spoke. "I swear on the life of this little crazed bitch, if you lay one hoof on her, I will kill her, and all of you in one...simple...thought!", Pinkie yelled. She looked at Twilight and Spike who were then thrown back into a wall. The wall grew arms and closed them both in. She then looked at the Doctor. He was pinned to the wall in a position of crucifixion, which then started to kill him. She looked at Night... who was gone!

"What! That is not possible. He's just vanished, right into thin air. POOF! gone!", Rose screamed. She ran up to Twilight. "You will tell me where he went, or your friend,", She pointed at Spike, "WILL DIE!"

"She doesn't know." said the Doctor calmly.

Pinkie, or now Rose, Twilight thought, walked toward the Doctor.

"You dare speak for her?" Rose asked. She looked to her side where a few sticks were lying around. They were lifted up with her mind. She looked at the Doctor. "This will teach to NEVER, EVER interrupt me while I am talking!" She backed up and the sticks were sent flying through the air and speared the Doctor in the legs and through his stomach. Twilight screamed.

"Hey Rose, Right Behind you.", Rose turned around...and fell to the floor. Night was standing right behind her, a dagger in his mouth. "You wanna dance? Let's dance!" Rose tried to look at him but he was gone again. She felt a sharp pain in her back legs, discovering they had both been slashed and were bleeding quite a bit. She was then lifted and thrown to the ground, dazing her. From there, Night reappeared, and bound her limbs so she couldn't move.

"What was that about killing us? With a single thought?", Night asked, and blindfolded her too.

"NEVER! I SHALL NOT BE CONTAINED!", Rose shrieked attempting to break free from her bonds, failing miserably.

"You never challenge someone from Texas to see who is the better man. You will always end up tied up and trapped.", Night whispered in her ear.

Rose seemed to calm down quite a bit. Night lifted the blindfold to check. Sure enough, her eyes were light blue once more, signaling Pinkie was back in control. Twilight, Spike, and The Doctor fell from their positions and tumbled onto the floor. Twilight once again screamed and ran over to an unconscious Doctor. The sticks had went in deep...really deep. They had penetrated all the way through his legs and through his stomach. He opened his eyes, but they seemed to be graying.

"I think I am dying Twilight. I don't know how much longer I can hold on. If I do die, I will come back with my memories, but my appearance and my personality will be different. I can't assure you will be pleased with my reincarnated form."

Twilight started to cry. "Please don't leave me. What about our adventures. They will never be the same without you!"

"Twilight, he will come back to life. What he is saying is that he will simply be different. He will remember you and all the adventures you had. He will just look and act differently.", Night said, now sitting beside the Doctor, pulling out the makeshift spears from the Doctors arms and chest. Pinkie chose that time to awaken.

"Woowee, what happened!", Pinkie said excitedly. Her eyes then found the Doctor, dying on the floor. "Doctor! What happened to you! You look terrible!"

"Rose just about did me in Pinkie. I am dieing.", The Doctor said weakly.

Spike appeared with some kind of liquid in a cup.

"We usually used this to calm down people who were possessed, but, it might help you pass on a little less painfully.", Spike said, handing the cup to the Doctor.

"Thank you Spike.", the Doctor said weakly, drinking the contents of the cup. "I will never forget you Twilight, remember that. Night, protect her with all you have got. I never know if I will want to be alone in my next reincarnation.", he said with his last dying breath. Then he was enveloped in light so bright it made everyone jump except for Night. When the light faded, it revealed an extremely light brown pony with dark brown hair and hazel eyes. He got up slowly and staggered, almost as if drunk.

"Well that's kind of a downer. I was hoping for a darker color this time. Merry Christmas!", The Doctor said smiling and then passed out.

Spike stood there in a weird state of confusion. Twilight ran over to the Doctor and hugged him. Pinkie was still dazzled and blinded by the light. Night simply stood next to the Doctor, unmoved.

"Well he passed out, that's for sure.", Twilight put in.

"Yeah, he did. He is regenerating, so he might be asleep for a while.", Night said, lifting him up. He was quite light in his opinion, too light. "He needs rest, nothing else. Just let him sleep. He will come around in his own time." Night had carried him to a bed and had set him down.

"When all's well, it ends well!", Pinkie cheered hopping around a still confused Spike.

"Not all is well Pinkie. Those creatures, they are still out there. I don't know their intentions, and you have no memory, if you had any, of what they are.", Night said sadly. He had come out to the main room again. "Speaking of which, Twilight, didn't the princess send you an URGENT message." Night said, flicking his eyes toward the paper still sitting on a stand.

"OH!", Twilight cried, and ran over to continue writing her message back. Spike had finally come out of his daze with the help of a really hard punch from Pinkie.

"You seem to know a lot more about the Doctor than we do. How?", Spike asked, getting back up on his feet and glaring at Pinkie, who in turn, simply smiled back innocently.

"Well, it is kind of confusing. It must wait until the Doctor awakens. He might be able to explain it better than I can.", Night stated simply.

"FINE! Keep us waiting, Gosh! Such a party pooper.", Pinkie shouted happily, smiling creepily at Night.

"We have got bigger problems.", said the Doctor, coming out of his room and sitting at the table. This time Night was shocked. Before he could react, Twilight called for Spike bringing Night's attention back to the problem at hand.

"Spike, send this to Celestia, and quickly. I have a feeling something bad is happening, and it isn't something that Rose planned." Twilight said. She smiled at Night and The Doctor the smile of someone who is about to do something stupid and devious, but quite efficient.

"What exactly did you say for them to do Twi. That look is giving me the creeps", Night said, obviously worried about the decision just made behind their backs.

"Oh I dunno, why don't you look at the response.", She said, and right on cue, Spike coughed up another bloody, crumpled letter. It read:

**"Hello my faithful student. I am glad to hear that you are alive. Thank you for the invitation. I would rather be there than in this (Blood) hole. We are on our way, but in no certain direction. We are going to need directions. We have been in a secluded canyon for the past 2 months. We have all but lost our sense of direction to our old home. Hope to see you soon and alive, my fine student. Your true Princess, Celestia."**

"You told her to come here, back to the town?", Spike asked.

"Yup!", Twilight said cheerily.

"Isn't that a bit dangerous, considering the fact that the creatures are nearby?" asked the Doctor.

Twilight grew puzzled. "There aren't any creatures here. They can't be. They are scattered.", Pinkie and Twilight said in unison, their voices merging to make a robotic almost manly voice. They looked at each other for a second, confused, then broke out laughing.

"This is no laughing matter. They are close. Within 50 miles of the town!" The Doctor said loudly.

"Why does this matter to us?" asked Pinkie.

"Because the princess is 60 miles from us. And she is heading in the same direction as the creatures.", The Doctor replied, looking at the exit from the shelter quite fondly.

Twilight began to argue but stopped herself, as if she knew what she was going to say was wrong.

"Then we don't have much time.", Night said.

"Exactly, we must find a way to get the prin..", The Doctor was interrupted by a whispering they all heard.

They all turned to find Rose standing against the door. Pinkie had lost control once more.

"Well hello one and all! It is time to play game. Now for your host, Night Mist.", With that she disappeared. Then Night staggered and backed up against a wall. He started to talk, his voice merged between his and Rose's

"Welcome to _**Win it All or Lose it**_** All**, the game where winning means life and losing means DEATH!", He smiled and nodded his head.

Twilight, Spike, and The Doctor were all suspended in mid-air. The floor below them opened up, revealing a pit with fire under each.

"Spike, for your first question. Is there 1000 or 10,000 red blood cells in a single drop of blood?", Night/Rose asked.

"Uhhhhhh. 10,000?"

"Correct! Twilight, for your first question. Is a Pegasus the cause of genetic mutation or adaption to a foreign environment?"

"That's an easy one. Both. The Pegasi were made when introduced to a natural occurring source of bacteria. These bacteria caused the horses to grow wings as they mutated the cells and the body tried to adapt."

"Spot on! Doctor for your question. Sind die uralte Rasse der Mayas eine Rasse von Native Americans oder Russen?"

Twilight and Spike mouths dropped to the floor.

"Die Mayas sind eine alte Rasse der Native Americans!", replied The Doctor cheerily.

"Correct, now Spi..." Night/Rose clutched his heart. His eyes turned cycled between Blue and Silver. "Resistance?!"

Twilight, Spike, and The Doctor were all thrown back against the wall. The holes in the floor were closed.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGG GGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH H!", Nights voice. He was in pain. What was happening inside his head? It was a good thing Twilight couldn't see what was happening. Finally his eyes settled on silver. "Whoa. That was not normal. That was crazy!", And with that, he fell to the ground. Twilight whimpered.

"My. This just gets crazier and crazier.", stated The Doctor.

"Aye.", Spike said, trying not to look at the floor.

Night awoke in a sudden movement, making all of them jump.

"Whaaa! HUH?! Whadizhappenintme?", Night jumbled. He looked around, his expression lighting when it fell upon Twilight.

"You look a bit disoriented my friend.", The Doctor said.

"Yeah...", Night replied.

"Are you Okay?", Twilight asked, walking up to Night and helping him up.

"Yeah. Rose simply was messing with head my."

"Oh sweetie, you got your head on backwards.", Twilight said.

"Uhhhhh?"

"Oh, never mind. You need some rest."

Then Nights eyes changed to Blue and his voice grew somewhat feminine.

"No, it is you who needs rest my dear!", Night/Rose looked at Twilight. Before she could react, Twilight was picked up and thrown into the ground. She was then thrown across the room like trash.

"WAIT! There is a connection between these possessions! I just had to connect the dots!", said The Doctor. He ran up to Night/Rose and placed his sonic screwdriver against his/her forehead. He clicked it on and Rose/Night fell to the floor. He ran to the other side and pressed it to his/her temple. Night/Rose's eyes turned silver and he groaned. He got up and pushed the Doctor away.

"Don't ever do that again! I felt like my head was going to explode!", He shouted.

"Just trying to help. Speaking of help.", replied The Doctor. He gestured to a now unconscious Twilight.

"DAMMIT! Rose, I am going to destroy you!", Night cried, running over to Twilight.

Not if you can't stop me. There is nothing you can do against me. I am nothing. Simply a being inside of that little pink wretch's mind. There is nothing that can be done to stop me. Give up now and help me in my quest.

A pause.

Eat shit and die.

The recoil was so strong in Night's head that he himself was knocked back. Good, that's taken care of. He ran back over to Twilight and picked her up. He then proceeded to carry her to a bed and set her down.

"Well, this has been one damn horrible day!", said Night.

"Yes, it has.", replied the Doctor.

"Aye", said Spike.

"We all need rest. Go on, get.", said Night.

The surprises in for them tomorrow were nothing they could have expected.

* * *

"Do you know where we are going?", a voice asked to the right of Celestia.

"Not really, just be patient. We will find our way there soon.", she responded.

Celestia was extremely sick now. Her body had begun to fail her. She had started collapsing at random intervals whenever she was standing up. They needed to get to the town soon or she might die out here.

A familiar blue shape with multi-color hair flew in front of Celestia and then rocketed upward.

"I don't see anything from up here! I don't think we are anywhere close to the town yet!", Rainbow Dash flew down and landed next to Celestia. She started walking beside her once more.

"We will find it soon. Keep your patience. Just don't stop moving.", Celestia said. She coughed up some blood and spit it to the side.

"Princess, are you sure you can go on? You look horrible!", worried Rainbow Dash.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me. Just keep pressing on."

Follow the light.

"What?", asked the princess.

"I didn't say anything.", responded Dash

"I am pretty sure I heard..."

"FOLLOW THE LIGHT!" screamed the voice.

"That.", whimpered Celestia.

"Uh princess.", Rainbow Dash was pointing her hoof to the left. Standing there was a white pony, close to the size of Celestia. He was all white, with silver eyes and a silver mane and tail. His Mark showed the moon floating over a lake covered by mist.

"Follow the light. It is your only hope. Wait and be still. Save your strength. Be calm and stay wary!", said he. Then, he was gone, vanished.

"Uhhhhuhhhhh Wha?!", Rainbow Dash slurred.

"I think we are to stay here.", replied the princess.

"But if we stay, those... THINGS are going to catch us!", said a voice in the back of the group.

"I am going to listen to what that apparition said. Let us rest and wait until tomorrow.", Celestia sighed, laying down.

"But princess if you die...", said Dash

"If I die, you will lead them.", replied Celestia, closing her eyes.

"Me?"

"Yes you. You have been at my side at all times after The Assault. You helped me when I was in need, helped me soothe the people, and helped keep them going. If anyone, you should lead them if I die."

Dash was speechless. Her, as a leader? The idea was crazy.

"Well he said follow the light. Doesn't that mean the sun?", said somepony.

"I don't think so.", replied Celestia. "Let us just wait and see what happens over the next day."

No one protested so Celestia let her self fall into a deep sleep.

* * *

**10 Hours Later**

* * *

Night was dreaming. He saw himself before a huge group of ponies, headed by what seemed to be the princess. He was telling them to follow the light. What light? When? Where? How? What was he supposed to do. The dream vanished and he awoke quickly.

"Another one of those dreams? If I am correct, I told them to follow the light. But what light? And where were they?", Night muttered to himself.

He was the only one awake other than The Doctor. Twilight stirred in her sleep to one side. Spike's eyes were moving side-to-side extremely quickly to the other side. The Doctor was in the other room, probably trying to figure the puzzles of the universe. Night walked into the other expecting to see the Doctor sitting at the table. Instead, he was greeted by the sight of The Doctor tied up and pinned to a wall. Pinkie was standing pushing him against the wall. They were looking each other in the eye. Pinkie started raising her head to The Doctor's.

"Uhh, I hope I didn't intrude on anything.", said Night, turning his head away quickly. Pinkie was shocked back into focus. She dropped the Doctor and walked up to Night.

"I wasn't uhhh... doing anything uhhhhh... with the Doctor!", She said, failing at trying to act innocent.

"I see! You two have a thing for each other don't you!", Night exclaimed.

"Well you see...", started The Doctor.

"Yes!", said Pinkie, smiling. She leaned over and nudged The Doctor. Then she froze in place.

"Are you okay?", Night asked.

Pinkie mumbled something into The Doctor's ear. He shook his head.

"What? Why are you shaking your head?, Night asked, his face starting to show curiosity.

"L-look in th-the mirror.", Pinkie said, her eyes aglow.

Night looked in the mirror... and almost fainted. On his side were now two large wings, white like his skin. And they were bigger than he was, stretching out behind him at least a foot.

"I have wings!? Where the hell did these come from!", Night said.

"I dunno, but they are big and they look... different.", Pinkie replied.

"Different?", Night inquired.

"Well, in this town, wings weren't so large. They were almost always relatively small. And they were kind of oval shaped. Yours go back like a hawk and are proportional in about the same way.", Pinkie replied, putting on a so-called "thinking cap" look on her face.

"So...you are saying my wings aren't...normal?", Night asked, a look of puzzlement on his face.

"Exactly!", The Doctor said, smirking at Pinkie.

"Hey guys, what's with all the noise?", Twilight groaned, coming around the corner. Spike followed in suite, rubbing his eyes. Then they both saw Night.

"Are those...?", Spike wheezed, his eyes twitching.

"Wings!?", Twilight finished.

"Uhh, let me check...", Night said sarcastically. He looked in a mirror and back at a now frowning Twilight. "Yep! But I am just as confused as you are. I have no idea how I got them." He stretched them out and them sharply pulled them back. "Ouch! They freaking stiff as hell. Hoo Boy, that hurt!", Night shouted. He stretched them out again, this time able to fully stretch them out.

"Night, there is something on your wings.", Twilight said, trying to focus her eyes on that something.

"What?", Night said. He spread his wings as wide as they would go. There was something on both his wings. On one wing it was square surrounded by circles and triangles. On the other it was a triangle surrounded by circles and squares. On his chest, the same, except this time, circles surrounded by triangles and squares. "What in the name?"

"I've seen those somewhere!", Pinkie said, now at his side. "They are symbols of The Pyre!"

"The Pyre?", Spike asked. "Sounds like a place in Twilight's Deja-Vu.", he said, looking at Twilight.

"It is not how it sounds. It is a hill that... wait, I can't tell you.", Pinkie said her eyes flicking from pony to pony and then to the ground.

"Why?", Twilight asked.

"It is a demonic place. If she described it to you, you would all be in danger for having that knowledge.", said a voice. It was deep and it was coming from Night. The symbols were glowing and his eyes were a golden-brown. "It is a place in which only can be seen, not told. Be warned, you are all in serious danger as we speak. Spike, go outside with Night. He will show you the way!", the voice said, and with that, Night dropped to the ground. His eyes returned to there normal color and the symbols stopped glowing.

"Spike, follow me. I think I know what to do.", Night said, walking towards the door. Spike followed without objection. They walked up the tunnel and to the outside world. When they got outside, Night turned the corner and started walking towards a tall building. When they reached it, Night stepped into the middle of the street and drew a series of 4 ellipses, with a spiral in the middle. He looked around and saw something glint at the top of the building. 'Spike, jump on to my back."

"I am not..", Spike started to argue.

"If you don't, all of those people out there die. Now get on my back!", Night growled.

Spike started to object, but one look from Night told him he was screwed if he argued again. So he climbed up onto Night's back. Night pumped his wings a few times. "Hang on!", he said, and then they rocketed upwards. When they reached the top of the building, Night set Spike down.

"You see that plate? I need you to aim the light at the symbol I drew in about 2 minutes. Count to 90, and then calibrate the light onto the spiral. Don't fail me. The lives of many are in your hands right now.", Night ordered.

"O-Ok. You don't have to act like that to get me to listen.", Spike sighed. Night gave one last look at Spike and then flew down to the spiral. He looked at the sun and waited. After 90 seconds had passed, Spike focused the light onto the middle of the spiral.

"Just a few seconds more...", Night mumbled.

Then, all went dark.

"A solar eclipse. You tricky bastard.", Spike said, admiring the view.

Then light started to come from the center of the spiral. It shot up and into the sky.

* * *

"Celestia, look!", said somepony.

Celestia saw a light shooting into the sky.

"I see, Follow the Light.", she said, smiling a little bit.

* * *

"This is bad! Oh so very bad!", Night said, pacing on the building.

"What? What is bad?", Spike asked.

"They are coming. A whole lot of them. Those...things. They are following the light!"

"Ohh...", Spike wheezed.

"I must create a diversion. I need you to knock me out."

"What?"

"You heard me. Knock me out. I need to visit the group in a dream."

"Oh, I get it now.", Spike answered. He picked up a piece of stone and threw it at Night. It hit him square in the forehead.

"Good shot!", Night said, and then he blacked out.

* * *

"He is back.", Dash said, pointing to the white pony.

"There are going to be two lights. You must only follow the original. If you don't, you will surely die. Heed me, for I can only say this once.", shouted the mysterious pony.

"So follow the one we are following now?", asked somepony in the back.

The white pony nodded. Then, he vanished. Celestia fell down in a fit of bloody coughing. Rainbow Dash looked on with worry.

* * *

Night awoke on top of the building. His head hurt like bitch.

"You have got a damn good arm Spike."

"Thanks."

Night flew down to the light.

"Hmmmm...", he frowned.

The symbols on him began to glow and he flew into the light. He came out glowing with internal light. He rocketed off somewhere into the distance.

* * *

"The light he was talking about has appeared.", Dash said, looking at the second beam of light.

"Good. Keep following the original.", Celestia sighed. They had traveled about 20 miles from the canyon in that short amount of time, and she was tired.

"I suggest we rest for a little bit. We know which direction we have to go now.", suggested somepony.

"That's sounds great.", Celestia groaned, and she fell down to the ground, exhaustion taking over her body.

* * *

Spike waited at the top of the building. He turned around and saw something at the edge of town. It was moving! Someone was alive! He used his spikes to slowly slide down the building. He ran towards the survivor. When he arrived the pony had fallen but was still breathing. She was orange and had a red mane and tail. She looked up.

"I have been traveling for many days and nights. My body is tired with fatigue and hunger. Is there any shelter that I can be led to?.", she asked weakly. She laid her head back down and she started to doze. Spike ran as fast as he could back to the shelter. He arrived just as The Doctor burst out the door. He was carrying Pinkie on his back.

"Whoa, what happened?!", said Spike, skidding to a stop by The Doctor.

"Rose Red took over once more. She knocked Pinkie out and then left. She almost killed her. Pinkie is barely breathing.", The Doctor replied coldly.

"Oh boy. Twilight, do you have any food.", Spike asked.

"What? Why?", Twilight cocked her head.

"I found a survivor. She is tired and hungry."

"No way! Okay let me get food.", Twilight shouted, rummaging through a few cupboards. "Ready! Lead the way!"

Spike lead Twilight to the mare. She was still on the ground but had rested enough to lift her head when they arrived.

"Oh thank you so much! I thought I was going to die of starvation!", she said. Then she started gobbling up the food.

"Uh, Twilight, I think we have a problem.", Spike said. He pointed to three buildings. On top of each, a demonic looking, black pony stood. They all licked their mouths' in unison. They jumped down to the ground and approached the trio.

"What are those things? They look like us, except... they are not us.", asked the mare.

"I don't know.", Spike answered. Then one of them jumped with incredible speed. Just as he was about to land on Twilight, he was knocked out of the air and slammed into the ground. Night was standing by the body of their assailant.

"No one attacks Twilight.", he said. He looked at the other two creatures. They looked back, saliva hanging from their lips. Then they all charged at each other. Night dealt one in with a blow to the head and a kick to the side, but the other dodged back and launched himself at Night. He sank his fangs into Night's back. Night screamed and threw himself backward, crushing the creature into a daze. He then grabbed it by the nape of its neck and pulled it upward, flying higher and higher. When he reached about 150 feet, he let go of the creature and kicked it towards the ground. It hit the ground with a resounding CRUNCH! It bounced and landed once more, still and lifeless. Night landed next to the creature.

"It's dead. I broke almost every bone in its body. If he is alive, he will not be able to move.", Night said, walking up to the trio. "Are you all ok?"

"I am a little shaken, but fine otherwise.", Twilight responded.

"Same here.", answered Spike.

"You, you just took out three... things! They looked powerful, yet, you defeated them. How? And, you look pretty hurt. That one got you pretty good.", cried the mare. She got up and worried over the bleeding puncture in Night's skin. "This is deep. Very deep. You need some bandages, or else you might bleed out!"

"I'm fine! Now, would you like to tell us your name, miss?", Night sighed.

"Oh yes! My name is Orange Sunset. I am of no real importance. I was just a normal citizen of the town before that attack happened. I fled as fast as I could, running until my body gave out. I found shelter and food, and for two and a half months I stayed there, but those...huge creatures found me, so I once more had to run. I ran and ran, and ended up back here. And then you know what happened after that, don't you, Night Mist?", Orange Sunset replied, looking Night in the eye.

"How do you know my name!?", Night shouted. He charged at Orange and pinned her to a wall. "I just met you! How in the hell do you know my name! Answer me!"

"I looked inside your mind when we locked eyes. We exchanged information as one might say. A door opened can be passed through either way. You know that!", Orange said, her face showing the start of admiration. Night huffed and set her down. Spike and Twilight stared on, confused. Orange was pulling at one of Night's legs. "Come on! We must leave. They are after me! We must get into the shelter!" Orange starting running in the direction of the shelter. Night, Spike, and Twilight looked at each other for a second, and then they ran after Orange Sunset.

* * *

"Princess, I can see the town from up here. We are getting close!", Rainbow Dash squealed in delight.

"Now, now, most of us can't fly, so it might still be awhile before we reach our destination.", Celestia said. She patted Dash on her head. "You have done well, so just walk with us now." Rainbow Dash sighed and fell in beside Celestia.

"It is quite a troubling time. We have little food and water, and we still are about a day away from town. You are sick and we are dying. Are any of us going to live before we are safe?", Rainbow Dash questioned Celestia.

"Those are horrible thoughts dear. You mustn't think like that. We will be fine. We only have about 20 miles left in our journey. Just be patient and keep moving forward.", Celestia responded. She looked to the side and coughed blood and mucus. Rainbow Dash looked away, not wanting to watch her dying princess waste away.

* * *

Night came upon Orange staring at The Doctor and Pinkie. Pinkie was holding The Doctor's head in her arms, brushing his mane and rubbing a purple spot on his head. The Doctor himself was out, groaning and mumbling occasionally.

"Ummmm...?", Orange asked.

"Oh hello. Um. Rose Red took over me again and lets just say that the recoil from the possession made my hit The Doctor's head extremely hard. It knocked both of us out. I woke up and he was still unconscious, so I tried to help the best I could.", Pinkie Pie said sadly.

"Rose Red?", Orange inquired, cocking her head. Night turned Orange's head to face his. There eyes locked and Night told Orange everything. Then he closed his eyes and looked away. "Oh.", Orange said weakly. She leaned up and kissed Night on his neck. "You have gone through a lot. Kudos to you for being so vigilant and brave."

"Thanks.", Night said. He smiled at Orange. Orange looked just about ready to jump Night. She started lifting her head level with Night's, slowly closing her astonishingly gorgeous orange eyes.

"Guys, remember! Aliens after us! Only hope is to get into the shelter!", Twilight puffed, coming around the corner.

"Right!", Orange and Night said in unison. Orange snapped open her eyes and nudged Night. Then she was off running into the house and through the entrance to the tunnel. She was swallowed up by the darkness. Night lifted The Doctor and carried him into the shelter, everypony else in suite. The door to the shelter sealed just as an explosion went off somewhere in the distance.

* * *

"Did you hear that?", asked Rainbow Dash. She looked to the side. "That sounded close. REALLLLLY close."

"Yes, I did hear that. I am trying to find the source, gimme a second.", Celestia said,. Her horn was glowing brightly and she ticked it back and forth. It seemed to finally find the source because it flashed and then went out. "That was about a mile away from us! Whatever caused it is close, and closing! We must hurry!", Celestia shouted. She started galloping towards the town, now within 4 miles and visible, despite her pain. Everypony else followed suite.

"Uh, Princess, you might want to look behind us.", said somepony flying above her. The princess looked back. What she saw made her run faster. About 15 of those tall creatures were coming down a hill and were in hot pursuit of the group.

"RUN!", Dash yelled, pumping her wings harder. They were getting closer to the town. 3 miles. 2 and 3 quarters. But those things were closing faster now. 2 and a half. "DON'T STOP MOVING!", Dash shouted. Somepony in the back fell. No time to save them.

* * *

"Wow, it's bigger on the inside! How deep did we go?", Orange asked.

"To this day, I don't know how deep that tunnel runs. It seems so short, but it isn't! It just keeps running I guess.", Night responded.

"Well, we need to find a source of water. We are running low.", said Twilight. "We have about 3 days worth, for the all of us." She sighed and sat down.

"Yeah, you are right. We do need to find water. Any ideas as of where though?", asked Spike. He seemed to be looking very sternly at Orange.

"I think I saw one on my way here. It is only about 200 yards out. It looked to be enough to supply a town for a month, at least!", Orange replied. She was hopping from hoof to hoof anxiously, as if she wanted to get moving.

"I will go", Night said, walking up to Orange. "I have wings making me the fastest. Orange,", he looked at Orange, "come with me. You know where it is. Twilight, you wait for the princess and her group to get here. I will be back as soon as I can."

A female voice rung out in Night's head. Still alive.

"What?", Night asked out loud.

"None of us said anything.", Pinkie replied, confusion on her face.

Name...y...Sti...alive!

"Someone is saying something to me. I can't make out what they are saying.", Night said his eyes narrowed.

Nev..ind...Beware...Sp..ke.

"GET OUT OF MY HEAD ROSE!", Night yelled, making everyone flinch.

Brother.

A male voice. Night stared at the wall. That voice. It was familiar. But from where?

"Never mind, Pinkie, ignore what I just said. Orange, let's go.", Night turned, leaving a bewildered group staring at him. Orange snapped back into focus and ran after Night. They exited just as Pinkie backed up against a wall with fear in her eyes.

* * *

Pinkie watched in horror as everything went dark. A voice, deep and dark, started speaking. It seemed as if it was all around her.

**Oh faces,  
So many of them.**

**They range in size from big to small,**  
**but there is one scarier than all.**

**Big and black,  
With spikes on back.**

**A snout,  
for smelling out.**

**All the souls to capture,  
OH! what a rapture!**

**Eyes as dark as night,  
My! What a fright!**

**Mind as quick as sand,  
and without a single hand.**

**Teeth like razors,  
eater of all gazers.**

**He instills all kinds of fear,  
your scream, no one will hear.**

**He is the Devil's only son,  
and no one can run!**

Pinkie screamed and blacked out.

* * *

"Doctor! Doctor wake up! Something is happening to Pinkie!", shouted a voice. The Doctor opened his eyes. His head hurt like hell. Twilight was staring down at him with a look of worry on her face. The Doctor noticed that he had been dragged out of the bed and into the main room. He looked to his right. Pinkie was on the floor, convulsing severely.

"What the hell!?", The Doctor asked, getting up. He ran over to Pinkie and took out his sonic screwdriver. He clicked it on and pointed it at Pinkie's head. "Good lord! Her brain activity is off the charts! If she doesn't stop, she will die!", The Doctor shouted. "Spike! Fetch me some of that liquid you used to help me pass on easier!"

Spike ran off in search of more of the liquid. Suddenly, a light appeared in front of The Doctor. He fell back at its appearance. There was something inside, but he couldn't tell because the light was too bright.

"Sleep, young one. Your time has not come yet.", said a voice within the light. It sounded feminine. Light passed over Pinkie and she stopped convulsing. Then the light flashed and was gone. The Doctor got up and ran towards Pinkie. She opened her eyes.

"Hello Doctor. How are you feeling?", Pinkie said. She leaned up and kissed The Doctor. He looked away embarrassed.

"My head hurts, but otherwise, I am fine.", he said. He backed up to let Pinkie up. Spike returned at that moment with a cup of the liquid in his hand.

"Doctor, I have the li... Oh. Never mind then.", Spike sighed.

"Oh Spike, you missed it. There was the most beautiful light. It healed Pinkie and then disappeared.", Twilight said, her voice still mingled with lingering awe.

"Well, I guess we don't need this then.", Spike murmured, throwing the cup to the side.

"That wasn't just light. There was somepony in there. It couldn't see details, but it was definitely a pony. But she said something." Pinkie turned towards Spike and starting walking toward him. "She said Beware of Spike." Pinkie's eyes cycled between light and dark blue. "What does that mean, Spike. You aren't plotting against me are you. You can't possibly be doing anything to counteract my plans, right?" Pinkie had backed Spike up against the wall. He seemed almost to be breaking out in a cold sweat.

"I don't know! What if she is evil? What if she was only trying to corrupt you? You can't always believe what people say.", Spike wheezed.

"Look me in the eye and tell me you are not up to something. Let me see if you can do it.", Pinkie looked at Spike intently. He raised his eyes to hers. He recoiled the moment their eyes met, but he managed to lock gazes with her once more.

"I honestly have no clue as to what she was talking about.", Spike answered. He jolted his head away the moment the last word came out of his mouth. Pinkie stared at him for a second. She then raised a hoof. Spike floated off the ground and was pushed against the wall. He tugged at invisible hands around his neck.

"You are lying! You know what she was talking about!", Pinkie cried. She slammed her hoof down, and Spike slammed into the ground with it. Before Rose/Pinkie could do anymore damage, the door burst open. Night and Orange stumbled in, covered in cuts, bruises, and maybe even a few broken bones. Pinkie shook her head and looked at the duo.

"Holy CRAP!", Night shouted. He began laughing. Orange Sunset stared for a second and then began laughing too. They dropped to the floor where they continued laughing for about 2 minutes. When they stopped, Orange spoke up.

"That was crazy! We had just about reached the lake when we were ambushed by one of the tall aliens. We got into a little scuffle with it which didn't end up so well for us. It got us pretty damn good. We distracted it long enough to make it trip over a fallen log. Night grabbed me and began to fly off. After about 50 feet, we were knocked out of the air. Night was too dazed to fly, so, we ran. We ran, and ran, and ran. We didn't stop until we got inside the tunnel. That is our little story if you needed explanation.", Orange said excitedly, acting out everything she said. There was an awkward silence which was finally broken by Twilight.

"Wow! What a tale! Um. Is that thing still out there?", she asked.

"No. When we reached the city limits it stopped. We stopped to look at it. It was looking past us, at something behind us I guess. It let out a growl, turned away, and trundled off. When we looked behind us nothing was there, so we just kept running, in fear that the creature might return.", Orange responded. She got up and helped Night up. He stretched out his wings and shook his head.

"I am exhausted! Sleepy time!", he said, and he passed out where he stood. He didn't wake up when they moved him to a bed.

* * *

Night opened his eyes. He was in some sort of building. But where? He got up and looked out a window. He was in the sky!

"Whaaaa?", Night began. A voice emerged from a dark part of the building. It was the same male voice that he had heard and recognized.

"Calm brother. Everything is all right. We do not want to hurt you. You are dreaming. Let us explain.", the male voice said. Night heard a sound of hooves on concrete and then the male voice was joined by a female voice.

"You are much different than those who surround you Alex.", continued the female voice. Night started when the last word left her mouth. Alex. They knew him as a human. But how? Who were they? And why did they sound so familiar!?

"You are powerful, Alex. You are these people's only hope of getting out of this universe alive. We will tell you more, so listen.", said the male voice. Night strained his ears. The last thing he saw before he awoke was a glint of red and blue, side by side.

* * *

Night awoke with such force he propelled himself onto the bed. Wait. On to the bed? Had he fallen off? That must be the reason he woke up. "Well, that was anti-climactic. They hadn't even started talking yet.", Night groaned, getting up. He walked into the main room. Orange was the only one there. She was sitting at the table, her eyes half closed. When she saw Night, they flew open. She got out of the chair and trotted over to Night.

"Hi Night. Everyone else went to sleep. The Doctor, I don't know where he went.", she said.

"Wanna come with me?", Night asked.

"Where?"

"Gonna get some fresh air."

Night started toward the door. Orange followed him through the tunnel and outside. They walked side by side through the ruined streets. Night sighed.

"What is wrong?", Orange asked, sidling closer to Night.

"Oh I have so much on my mind."

"Like what exactly?"

"Well, I am the only hope for us to get out of this universe alive."

"I believe in you. I think you can do it."

"Thanks. But I am also just stressed. I have to deal with so many things."

"Rose Red?"

"Not just her. I have this alien threat to deal with. I seem to be followed by 2 or 3 ponies whose power is greater than normal. I am still in shock over the events of the past few days. I am just tired. But I can't sleep. Not properly anyway. My dreams are always some prediction or some supernatural event. I don't get a proper rest and it is taking quite a toll on my body."

Orange grew saddened. She looked up at the gleaming night sky.

"Look at the stars tonight. They are so bright!", she said, forcing a smile.

"You wanna see something better?"

"Sure."

Night pumped his wings and began to float. He flew over Orange and picked her up. He carried her to the top of a hill blanketed in warm and soft grass. He set her down and then landed. They both laid down and turned to look up at the sky. There were many more stars visible, along with the band of the galaxy they were in.

"Wow! It's so gorgeous!"

"Back in my universe, I knew the names of all the stars.", Night sighed. Orange slid in next to Night, putting her head on his stomach.

"You had a great knowledge of the stars as Alex then?"

"Oh of course. I loved to look up at the sky at night and name all the constellations that were visible."

"You are out of your comfort zone?"

"Oh, yes. These skies are so unfamiliar. It is like I am looking at a fresh piece of paper. Unknown until it is written on and explored." A bright light streaked across the sky. "A shooting star! Make a wish, quick!"

"But I have no wish. This was my last."

"What?"

Night lifted his head to look at Orange. She had flipped over and was looking at him. She leaned forward and kissed him. They held the kiss for what felt for a lifetime before Orange pulled away. Her eyes were aglow. She flipped back over on to her back and once more laid her head on Night, this time close to the neck. Night pulled her in closer. He stared at the sky, the soft breath of Orange passing down his neck and onto the grass beside them. He felt his body start to react to this moment. Her body was so warm and inviting. He started to give in but he willed himself not to. His body listen, but only barely. He closed his eyes and finally had the first good sleep since his arrival here.

* * *

"It is quiet funny how they toil on in their lives. They wake up, rush, panic, get tired, and then sleep. It repeats like this almost every day!", said a male voice.

"I agree with you that it is quite funny. I don't understand how they can live such a hectic life without tiring themselves to death.", responded a female voice.

"Good night!", trilled another female voice, this one higher pitch.

"Hello my precious daughter.", said the lower female voice.

"How are you doing, my light on a dark day?", asked the male voice.

"Quite fine.", answered the higher pitch female voice. "What are you looking at this time?"

"We are watching these poor people go through there everyday lives.", responded the lower female voice. The sound of hoof steps is heard.

"Wait, that whit pony, isn't he...", began the high voice.

"Yes. We have got our eye on him.", finished the male voice.

"He is quite handsome. I don't know what to think of that Orange Sunset though. She is quite pretty, I will give her that.", the high voice said.

"Shouldn't we help them? They are as troubled as it is.", asked the lower female voice.

"Not yet. Everything has a time and place dear. But soon. Very soon.", the male voice answered. Everything fades to black and the voices are no longer heard.

* * *

**Hello everyone. I hope you enjoyed this chapter of No Way Out. Chapter 3 will be out by or shortly after Christmas, depending on how many chances I get to type. If Chapter 3 isn't out by Christmas, Merry Christmas! Hopefully you guys have began to discuss what the possible endings are. Happy reading, and I would like to here your opinions, good or bad, on this chapter.**


	5. Chapter 3: A Discovered Truth

**Hello everybody! Tis' me, that voice in your head that never stops nagging about something long since past! I am going to stop the nagging for a little while and inform you upon some things.**

**1. If you see me in a dream, you should probably shoot yourself, because that means you have Brain Cancer!**

**2. This starts 1 day after the events of Ch. 2.**

**3. Continue reading and enjoy! **

* * *

Night awoke in a hurry. He bolted upright and landed back on the grass, staring upwards. That dream, was not right. It was not a prediction, but not a dream. It was a nightmare, but not just any nightmare. It was a memory of a time long ago. In it, Night was in space, floating around a comet. He landed on the comet and started to look for something. He found a mineral upon the comet and he picked it up. Then, he heard a sound behind him. He looked back but all he saw was blackness. The blackness enveloped him and starting closing in. Something appeared beside him. It was a large black and light blue winged wolf with a sign on its head. The sign looked carved into his skin, depicting a heart a inside a jail. The wolf looked at him.

"You know what to do.", said the wolf. His eyes began to glow and his body began to shimmer. Night picked him up and threw him at the darkness. The wolf turned silver and hit the darkness. There was a large flash of light and then, silence. The wolf and the darkness were both gone. Night heard himself utter one word before he awoke.

"Somaros.", he moaned sadly. Then he awoke, which is where he was now. Night shook his head. Rainbow Dash appeared out of the high grass and trotted up to Night.

"Morning!", she said with glee. "That was quite an awakening. I thought you were going to hit your head!"

"Morning Dash. Yeah, it was quite a scene. That dream though, it was so clear, so perfect. It was a nightmare, but a nightmarish memory. It had already happened and I am just now remembering it.", Night said, getting up and dusting himself off.

"Twilight is lookin' for ya'. Race you to the town!", Rainbow Dash trilled. She crouched down in preparation to fly.

"You know I will beat you.", Night responded, falling in beside Dash.

"Don't care. 3...2...1...GO!", she shouted and she was off, Night at her heels. They had raced about a mile and Night had about a 40 foot lead on Dash when he suddenly stopped. Rainbow Dash rocketed past him and tumbled through the air into a stop. She flew back to Night.

"We have got trouble. BIG trouble.", Night said, looking at the plain under them. Dash followed his gaze. He was right. There were about 30 of those tall creatures and an army of infantry headed directly towards the town.

"Crap.", Dash said aloud. Night turned around continued flying towards town, Dash close behind. When they reached the wall of the town, they were greeted by a panicking Pinkie. The wall had been built up overnight, seemingly by magic. It had just appeared and had succeeded in keeping out threats. Most of them at least.

"You have seen them?", Pinkie asked. She was biting her lip and pacing.

"Yes. We are off to tell Twilight.", answered Night. Pinkie nodded and then proceeded to continue pacing. Dash stayed to comfort her friend as Night flew off to find Twilight. He found her wandering the town, chatting with Orange Sunset. He landed in front of them, causing them both to jump.

"What was that for! You just about gave me a heart attack!", Orange protested. Twilight glanced at Orange and rolled her eyes.

"They have arrived.", Night stated. This instantly stuck in both mares and they gave Night their full attention.

"How far out?", Twilight asked.

"About 6 miles.", Night responded.

"How many of them?", Orange asked.

"30 of the tall creatures and thousands of infantry.", Night answered calmly.

"So we have an army on our hooves?", Orange asked.

"Not even. They were so many more on the first day of The Assault.", Twilight scoffed.

"She is correct.", said The Doctor, who had apparently walked by and overheard their conversation. "There are many more out there. My educated guess is that this is a recon group. A force sent to scout the city and keep us from escaping."

"Sounds logical.", Night agreed. "The question is, how do we stop it?"

"Let us wait until they truly arrive. If my calculations are correct, that will be about 2 days. The tall creatures have to move slowly because of the infantry.", The Doctor put in helpfully.

"That way we can plan against them with the knowledge of how big the force is?", Twilight asked.

"Exactly!", The Doctor replied.

Two ponies walked up. A yellow and blue stallion and Derpy.

"Hi Derpy.", Twilight said sweetly.

"Hi Twilight! Night, we found something that might serve of some use.", Derpy chimed. "Follow me." She and the stallion began to walk towards the heart of the town, talking of something about a miracle waiting to happen. Night looked at the little group and caught up with Derpy, followed by Twilight and the Doctor. Orange wandered off to find something to do. Derpy lead them to a silver rod that appeared to have been dug out of the ground, probably by Derpy and her friend.

"What is it?", Night inquired.

"It looks like just a steel beam...", The Doctor said.

"Until you touch it.", Derpy interrupted. She ran a hoof over the beam and it began to glow a light blue. Suddenly a male voice came from the beam.

"I am lost in a deep, dark realm. I am without hope of escape and rescue. I am trapped with a dark being that should never be released back into the universes. If you are hearing this, that means that the Watchers are dead or dying. Heed my message, and don't try to save me. There is evil in this place, and it is angry. If any Watchers hear this, prepare for war.", said the voice. Night recognized that voice. Then, it hit him. The dream.

"Somaros?", Night asked.

"Mentsomnios, is that you!?", Somaros asked, his voice pepping up.

"Uhhhhh?", Night muttered.

"I am so sorry. I forgot about what happened. You... GODDAMMIT! That son of a bitch found me! I can't talk any longer. I must run. I am sure things will be explained to you. Farewell Night!", said Somaros, and then the beam went dark. The group around the beam stared back and forth from the beam to Night and back again. Finally, Derpy broke the silence.

"Father?", she whispered, tears in her eyes. Everyone looked at Derpy.

"He was your father?", Twilight asked, dumbfounded.

"Yes, but damn my horrible memory. I can't remember much about the time of the Watchers.", Derpy cursed, looking up at the sky.

"Well, tell us what you know then.", stated the yellow and blue stallion.

"Well, here goes. A long time ago, there was nothing but galaxies filled with cold stars and lifeless planets. But, out of natural elements, the Watchers were born. There was Watchers for wind, fire, ice, sleep, water, grass, life, you name it. They were tranquil beings who worked together with the one true God to create life, plants, water, heat, and many other things you see and feel today. Most stayed alone, but a few fell in love with another. For example, my father Somaros, Watcher of Bodies and Stillness, and my mother Auraleas, Watcher of Gold. From them I came but something terrible happened. There began a time known as The Great Die Off. An entity of immense and dark power rose. It started slaying Watchers, my mother included, with nothing seemingly able to stop it. But a once unknown Watcher appeared and worked together with my father to stop this force. His name was Mentsomnios, the strongest and most powerful Watcher ever to exist. Mentsomnios lured the entity to a desolate place, and from there, he gave my father the power to trap this entity in a realm in which IT couldn't escape. But in doing so, my father sacrificed his life. Or so I thought. If he is still alive then so is the creature, for if he were to die, the realm would collapse, vaporizing anything inside of it instantly. That thing is never to be released again, or it would mean the end of all life, no matter in what universe. I was born billions of years ago, but during The Great Die Off, some of the children were sent through time rifts, tumbling through time, space, matter, and dimensions. Most were lost and were never seen again. But a few survived, including me. Going through so many rifts takes its toll, resulting in me reverting to a baby by the time I reached this universe. It also scrambled my mind, giving me my natural stupidity. I don't know who else survived, but there are more Watchers out there. I can feel them.", Derpy said. When she finished, she discovered that everyone was gaping at her. Twilight was the first to break the silence.

"How many died?", she asked.

"The entity wiped out the entire race. If I were to take a guess, Only about 10 out of the 100's of Watchers survive to this day.", Derpy sighed. Twilight began to cry.

"You are so alone, yet you lock it away. I am so sorry I didn't ever ask about certain things in your life.", Twilight cried. She stood next to Derpy and let Derpy lean on her.

"He said Mentsomnios when Night asked if that was Somaros. Is Night actually Mentsomnios?", The Doctor asked.

"I wouldn't know. I only know of him through a story my closest friend told me before he was lost. But maybe. There is so much that I don't know. If I knew it, I have most likely forgot it.", Derpy answered.

"Wait, you said you were the daughter of two Watchers. Doesn't that mean that you have their powers?", Night asked.

"Yes, but I haven't discovered them yet. It takes sometime for the children to inherit their powers. But I have discovered my own unique power. Put a hoof on me, and I will let you feel.", Derpy said. Everyone put a hoof one her. Her yellow mane turned gold and glowed. And then they felt the world. They felt the steady rumble of the core, the dribbling of water over waterfalls. They felt the vibrations from volcanos and faults. They heard the sounds of the animals and plains and rainforests. And then it was gone. Derpy's hair had returned to its natural color and she was asleep on the floor. She woke up and got up. She almost fell again, but Twilight supported her.

"That was...there...I...", Twilight began.

"There is nothing quite like it, is there?", Derpy finished.

"No. There isn't.", gasped the yellow and blue stallion.

"You can feel worlds. You can sense the slightest interruption in the biological cycle.", Night stated, studying Derpy intently.

"If you don't mind, could you stop staring at me like that. You are making me uncomfortable.", Derpy said nervously.

"Your name isn't really Derpy is it?", The Doctor asked.

"No. My true name is Aesthetia. I suppose it is fitting because of my power.", Derpy responded.

Rainbow Dash appeared peering over a building above them.

"SOMETHING IS HAPPENING IN THE DISTANCE! NIGHT, YOU SHOULD SEE IT!", she shouted down.

"Coming!", Night called up. Rainbow Dash disappeared behind the ledge. Night flew after her, Derpy following for the hell of it. When they arrived at the wall they saw something impossible.

"No! It is not physically possible!", Night said.

"Yet, there it is!", Pinkie said, awe visible on her face.

In the distance, it was snowing. But in one spot. It was focused on a small grass patch. It seemed there were three figures in the snow, two flying in the air, one on the ground in the snow.

"This is the work of Watchers.", Derpy said smiling.

"How do you know for sure?", Pinkie asked.

"What's a watcher?", Rainbow Dash asked.

Derpy ignored Rainbow Dash and answered Pinkie. Her mane turned gold and glowed

"I can sense the abnormality of the weather phenomena. It is caused by a weather shift. There are only two beings that can do something like that. IT and Watchers. This is controlled meteorological activity.", Derpy explained.

"Are those two flying figures Watchers?", Night asked.

"Most likely. But I can't be for sure. As for the figure on the ground, I can only tell two things. She is female and she is emitting a form of power I have never felt before. She is different.", Derpy answered.

"Look, they are leaving!", Pinkie said.

They went out quite spectacularly. One of the flying figures exploded into light and disappeared. The other flying figure slammed into the ground and was swallowed by a jet of water. Finally, the one on the ground flew up and started to fade away. But she looked at Night before she did. Night felt the eyes of someone who was caring, kind, and loving lock with his. Then she disappeared entirely.

"Wow!", Dash exclaimed.

"What a show!", Pinkie finished.

"I am sure they are Watchers now. Unless those just happened to be 3 extremely powerful alicorns.", Derpy whistled.

"Do you know who they are?", Night asked.

"No. But I know what those are!", Derpy exclaimed, beginning to panic.

"Oh, come on! These things just do not give up!", Night yelled. The army of creatures and infantry they had seen earlier was rounding a hill in the distance.

"What do we do now!?", Pinkie exclaimed, she began to pace once more.

"I don't know! And calm down will you! We are going to figure something out!", Night shouted. He slapped Pinkie across the face with his wing, knocking her down, much to the horror and surprise of Rainbow Dash. Pinkie got up and started rubbing the already forming mark on her snout.

"Should we ask The Doctor?", she asked, gratefully accepting the comfort given to her by Dash. Dash simply glared at Night.

"Soon, but not yet. There is something I have to deal with first.", Night responded. He walked past Pinkie. "Sorry. I overreacted. Feel better soon.", he whispered as he passed by. The he flew off in the direction towards the hill where all of this had first started.

* * *

Somaros ran and ran and ran. The pads on his paws were stating to get extremely sore and raw. He couldn't go much longer. He fell down, exhausted. He looked behind him, but IT was gone. Had IT given up?

"No, no. IT will never give up. IT is toying with me. Come out you cowardly bastard!", Somaros shouted into the darkness. Suddenly two eyes appeared, glowing red with evil. IT began to speak.

"Well then, you are smarter than you look Somaros! I could use someone like you. You would be quite useful in my plans.", IT said.

"In your dreams, you evil son of a bitch!", Somaros shouted back. The eyes moved in closer to Somaros, now only about 2 yards away from his face.

"How would you like to go home? Be free. Roam the Universe as you once did.", IT asked.

"I will never work with you! Stop trying to bribe me! It won't work!", Somaros answered.

"How would you like to see Aesthetia again?", IT asked. He was sure this would work. Somaros looked away. A tear fell from his eyes.

"Nothing can fix that. That is a regret I will simply have to die knowing.", Somaros whispered. He got up and started walking in no certain direction. IT took the shape of a shadowy human and walked beside Somaros.

"I am quite thankful that you joined me in this prison. The company is enjoyable, as stubborn as he is.", IT digressed. Somaros believed him. It was nice having at least something else in this realm other than himself. It helped to calm the pain of complete isolation. And, as evil as IT was, he would rather be trapped here with IT than alone.

"How long have we been here? 10 million years? 10 billion? Long enough to make a man miss his only and beloved daughter?", IT asked.

"Actually, we have been here for 2 weeks. But this realm is specially constructed. If I were to release you right now, we would appear in a universe about 10 billion years ahead of our time. We have only aged two weeks while the rest of the universe has aged billions of years.", Somaros answered.

"So much we have missed! Have you even considered for a second letting us out, for the sake of seeing your universe once more?", IT asked.

"No. My sole duty was to keep you locked in here, never to see the light of the stars again.", Somaros responded coldly.

"We can work together! I can fix most things I have done, slowly but surely. I just need your trust!", IT said excitedly.

"No! YOU can never be trusted. YOU killed MY people. YOU destroyed everything that once was! And you expect me to trust you!?", Somaros yelled at the apparition at his side.

"I know we aren't on good terms, but if you will just listen...", IT started.

"No! F*** off! Get the hell away from me and never talk like this to me again!", Somaros finished. With that, he teleported himself to another part of the realm.

"Shit. Now I have to find him again.", IT sighed and started off in a random direction.

* * *

Night had fallen and Rainbow Dash was patrolling on the wall, looking out for any threats. She stopped when she thought she saw something in the distance. It was huge and black, and moving! It didn't have form really, more like a giant, 3D shadow.

"What the hell?", she asked herself. Two eyes appeared on the shadow and they locked with Dash's eyes. She was instantly rocked to the ground by thoughts of death, chaos, destruction, betrayal, and deception. She blacked out and rolled off the side of the wall, luckily, towards the town. Orange Sunset was walking along below and caught Rainbow Dash before she hit the ground. Rainbow Dash opened her eyes, dazed, but okay. Orange set her down.

"That was quite a fall. Were you tryin' to kill yourself?", Orange asked worriedly.

"No. There was something out there. Something dark and evil and terrifying.", Dash whispered back. Orange helped Dash up and gave her a reassuring kiss on the neck. She backed up and patted Dash on the back.

"There, there, it was probably a trick of the light. This is one of the darkest days I have seen. I am sure everything is alright.", Orange reassured.

"No, it wasn't a trick of the light. There was something there. It wants to kill us. All of us. Starting with the first pony he gets his hands on!", Dash objected. Orange shook her head.

"I have got to get The Doctor to check you out. You seem to be a little off edge.", Orange said.

"But...", Dash started.

"No buts. Follow me.", Orange commanded. Dash shut up and followed Orange obediently. They arrived at the house and walked through the shelter entrance down to the shelter. When they walked in, The Doctor, sitting at the table at the time, got up and saluted them. "I need you to check little miss right here out. I think she is tired, crazy, or warning us of something.", Orange told The Doctor.

"Right!", The Doctor said, and he got straight to it. He clicked on his screwdriver and started scanning Dash. After a few minutes, he clicked it off and looked sullenly at Orange.

"Well?", she asked.

"There is nothing wrong with her. But, her brain is in some kind of post-traumatic shock. Something happened that put her brain into overdrive.", he answered.

"When I looked at that thing, I saw all kinds of disturbing things. It sent me images of death and betrayal and chaos and so many other things. It scared me to the point of blacking out, making me.." Dash started.

"Fall off the wall and onto my back.", Orange finished.

"Exactly.", Dash said.

"That explains the post-trauma in your brain. Can you describe exactly what you saw?", The Doctor asked.

"Well I saw a dark shape I guess. A sha...", Dash started.

"A shadow. A shadow with eyes and an aura of evil and regret. A being so dark, that the mind is plagued with thoughts of traumatic things, such as death and betrayal.", Night finished, walking up behind the group.

"How did..", Dash began.

"I know? My memory of the Forgotten Times is coming back. I think I am Mentsomnios, resurrected and living. But there is no being sure. For all we know, someone is planting these memories inside my head. But I digress. Any volunteers?", he replied.

"What is that thing then?", Orange asked.

"It is a being of evil descent. Its name has changed many times. So many, that I can't remember but one.", Night answered.

"Which is?", The Doctor asked. Night looked at The Doctor seriously.

"Satan.", Night said coldly. At this The Doctor grew perplexed.

"I remember once dealing with "Satan". It was on a planet orbiting a black hole. I thought I destroyed it.", The Doctor stated.

"Oh, this thing take on many forms. It can be the fly buzzing around your head or the shadow with no body.", Night explained.

"The language it had was impossibly old. The TARDIS couldn't even translate it."

"Back in the Forgotten Times, an ancient language was used. It was impossible to decode, meaning, only the ones who knew it, understood it."

"That explains everything. Except for one thing."

"Which is?"

"If this thing is so powerful, how come it hasn't destroyed us already?"

Night grew silent and looked at the ground. Orange broke the silence after a few seconds had passed.

"So what Rainbow Dash saw was NOT a trick of the light?", Orange asked.

"Of course not. But that means that things are about to go very bad for us. We have troubled times ahead of us. Doctor, it seems we must start planning earlier than expected. If we don't act soon, this world will go from chaos to shit storm in no time.", Night said. He looked up and suddenly the air buzzed around them. Static seemed to be building up in the little room they were in. All of the hair on their bodies began to rise and they began to feel crackling over their bodies. Then they started to feel minute shocks throughout their bodies, rising to painful shocks.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhh! Stop! You are going to kill us!", Dash screamed. She fell to the floor writhing in pain, as did Orange and The Doctor. Night stayed standing, appearing not to suffer any of the effects. His mouth moved and for a second the pain spiked, but then, it was gone. The Doctor and Dash collapsed, blacked out. Orange struggled upwards but fell again. Night looked at them, and then after a second, the realization hit him, and he moaned. He ran over to Orange and helped her up.

"It seems that a someone in a high place has trust issues with you three.", he said as he set her down on a chair.

"What?", she groaned.

"I think someone doesn't trust you around me."

"Why would that be?"

"I don't know. But the good thing is that you are alive. Let's take a walk. The cold, refreshing, night air will help."

"Okay, but only when feeling in my legs returns."

"Really? You could have been paralyzed! What the hell is that persons problem with you three!"

"It is not just them. It is about the entire town.", Derpy said. She started forming out of dust and leaves on the ground. When she was fully formed she walked up to Night and Orange. "Neat trick right?"

"Sure beats walking, I guess.", Orange tried to joke.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, you said almost the entire town?", Night asked.

"Yes! I was walking along, talking to one of the survivors when BAM!, static electricity surging through her body. She dropped after about 10 seconds. She was out, which worried me, so I came to you, hoping you hadn't been affected. It appears Orange wasn't either?", Derpy said.

"Oh I was affected. I simply have a strong body, which kept me holding on a little bit longer. I was on the brink though." Orange replied. She laid her head on the table and closed her eyes.

"Who could have done this?", Night asked.

"Whoever it is, he or she is one sick bastard.", Derpy said.

Then they heard a knock on the door above them. It wasn't a calm, laid back knock of a visitor. It was the quick, hard knock of someone who was in great need or trouble. Orange awoke at the knocking, rubbing her eyes, and watching to see what Derpy and Night would do. Derpy shrugged her shoulders and began to walk up the tunnel. Night held back for a second then followed them up. Orange did not fell comfortable alone in this place, so she followed them both up the tunnel. When they arrived at the door, the heard panting and crying. This sparked Orange's motherly instinct and she threw open the door. Sitting on the step was a small Pegasus. She was orange with pinkish red hair. In fact she looked a lot like...Orange Sunset?

"Scoot!? Is that really you!?", Orange cried.

The little pony looked up and her face instantly lit up.

"Orange, I am here. I made it through the horrors of those creatures.", she said.

"She looks almost just like you.", Derpy stated. "Are you two..."

"Sisters? No. It is mere coincidence. I met Scootaloo one day while I was walking through a park. She had managed to get her mane hooked on a branch. I helped her get unstuck and then we started talking. We became friends extremely quickly. When the chaos erupted, I thought I had lost her. Ever since, I had helped where ever I could, attempting to clear my head of bad thoughts by doing good deeds. But now I may worry no longer!", Orange explained excitedly. She sat down close to Scootaloo, who leaned on her for support.

"We heard you knocking. It sounded like that of someone who is scared or excited. Which of them are you?", Night asked.

"Scared. I was traveling with about ten other ponies when we were suddenly ambushed by one of the pony looking creatures. We were within sight of the town, so we ran until we reached the wall. There were only three of us left, and we were backed up against the wall when suddenly, a light flashed in front of us. The creature backed off and stared at us from a distance. Then the light moved to the wall. When it touched the wall, a portion of it disappeared, big enough to let all of us through. When all of us were in, the hole closed and the light disappeared. Then after about 5 feet, they both fell to the ground. I tried to touch them, but I got zapped. So I ran around looking for someone. When I saw that this house wasn't destroyed, I was sure someone lived in it. So that's my short story.", Scootaloo said.

"Your friends aren't the only ones. Almost everyone in the down suffered the same shock.", Derpy stated.

"My question now is, why did he or she spare us two and Scootaloo. And maybe whoever else wasn't targeted.", Night asked.

Suddenly Orange threw her head back. Her tail began to spark and her eyes turned a red color. She started speaking in a tongue foreign to everyone. Except Derpy and Night.

"Sun un whazeet tu coraga rei ron col so rei con semplar!", Orange babbled.

"What did she say?", Scootaloo asked.

"She said that an ancient evil is coming. An ancient evil that can't be stopped.", Night and Derpy said in unison.

* * *

"Why in the hell did you do that!?", asked a low pitch female voice.

"They are not to be trusted.", responded a male voice.

"You are lucky our daughter is asleep. She would have killed you."

"It doesn't matter. Now shut up. The orange one is saying something."

A very long pause occurs. Oranges's voice is heard and echoes.

"She said 'Sun un whazeet tu coraga rei ron col so rei con semplar.'"

"You understand that don't you?"

"Of course. But what could she be referring to?"

"I think HE is back."

"That is not possible. We destroyed HIM after the capture of IT."

"Apparently not. You remember the time I told you that everything will happen in its own time?"

"Yes?"

"Now is the time to act. Get our daughter ready. We are heading down."

* * *

"Night, you understood what she said!?", Derpy exclaimed.

"Yeah, I did. My mind translated for me... Wait a second. Why did you ask if I understood?", Night asked.

"That is the language of the Watchers and IT. Night, there is no way you could have understood that unless you are a Watcher. Night! I have revealed your true identity!", Derpy finished with flair.

"What?", Scootaloo inquired.

Derpy bent down and kneeled in front of Night. Night stared on confused. When Derpy stood back up, her eyes were beginning to tear up.

"You are Mentsomnios. King of the Watchers. Surviving by escaping the reaches of an entity with immense power. The one who saved us all. And the murderer of my father. But all for the cause and sake of those who survived. Am I right?", Derpy asked, a maniacal smile starting to spread across her face.

"Sweetie, I think somethin's messin' with your head.", Orange said. She jumped up and held Derpy back before she could do anything.

"I-I have to take a walk. Tell Twilight if she asks for me. I won't be long.", Night panted. With that, he turned and rocketed off into the distance. He landed out of sight about 1/4 of a mile away. There were so many thoughts going through his head at the moment. Who was he? Truly? Alex Deroso of Earth, Night Mist of Equestria, Mentsomnios of the Universes? Why were there so many thoughts of space and death and destruction? Why were there so many thoughts of chaos and control and power and insanity? Why was his head thinking of so many things!? Then all thought processes stopped. He heard a sound. By this time he had reached an alleyway and the sound echoed through it. It was like a deep, bassy roll. He looked up. In the sky, there was a light, water, and distorted air. Then all three of these things plummeted towards the ground in front of Night. He jumped back at last second, twisting one of his legs in the process. Then, there were no longer shapes but ponies. There was a blue alicorn with dark blue eyes and a red and orange alicorn with red eyes. But next to them was a smaller yellow and pink Pegasus. She had light blue, captivating eyes. He knew at that instant that that was the one he had locked eyes with earlier.

"Hello Mentsomnios. We have awaited your return for a very long time.", The blue alicorn said. He was male and had a serious face.

"What he says is true. We have waited many aeons for your glorious return to this universe", stated the red and orange alicorn. She was female and sounded a little low pitch. She had a happy, gleeful face. The Pegasus simply shrunk back and watched Night.

"Excuse me. Nice to meet you and all, but, would you mind at least sparing a little freaking time to tell me who the hell you are!?"

"Very sorry! The excitement of your return has made us forgetful.", the red alicorn said. The blue one sighed and rolled his eyes. "Oh, don't mind him. He has always been a bit of a grouch. My name is Igniseria. I am the Watcher of Fire ,Heat, and Life." She pointed to the blue alicorn. "This is Aquilios. He is the Watcher of Ice, Cold, and Weather. He is my husband." Finally, she pointed to the Pegasus, who in turn, shrunk back even farther. "This is our daughter. Her name is Philantria. But, all of her friends called her Fluttershy."

"Brother, today is a great day! We have come to meet you. We will help you in your travels and in your adventures. And most of all, we have come to enlighten you.", Aquilios exclaimed. Night looked away. Unfortunately he looked right into Fluttershy's eyes. He saw everything in her mind. He learned her secrets and her fears. He found out her favorite things and the things that she disliked. And one other thing. She was like him. After this happened, she began to come out of hiding. Her mental lock-down began coming apart. Night had just healed a patient with his mind. He then noticed that Igniseria was talking to him.

"...dead. So we ran to the edges of the universe. We got lucky and we were able to jump universes through a fast closing tear. And we ended up in this universe, forever watching. That is when we found our daughter blending in among the hustle and bustle of this world. When that attack happened, we pulled her up with us, so our precious daughter didn't die. That is our story I guess.", Igniseria finished. Night just stared at her like she was crazy. Fluttershy, or Philantria, walked foward and sat at her mother's hooves. She smiled and Night felt as if something inside him had melted. He had just met her and he was already falling for her. Good Jesus Christ!

"And don't mind her. She is quite a talker!", Aquilios chuckled. In return, he got a flaming jab the the side.

"I must tell the others!", Night said. "It is very nice to meet you too by the way!" Then, he turned and flew off.

"I think that after the Die Off, he became a little insane.", Aquilios muttered.

"I don't blame him. He witnessed very much. He had a lot of pressure on him because, remember, he was and still is the king.", Igniseria pointed out.

"Humph.", Aquilios muttered once more. Fluttershy looked at her two bickering parents one second longer and then followed Night. Who was he going to see? Whoever it was, she wanted to find out.

* * *

"What do you mean HE is back!?", Somaros yelled. IT, still in human form, reached behind IT's head and scratched it.

"What I mean is that HE didn't die when they "killed" HIM. I knew HE was always a coward. That bastard fled and regained HIS power.", IT explained with a cold tone.

"Great! Not only am I stuck down here with you, HE is on the loose, poising to kill everyone in HIS path! What a wonderful F***ing universe we live in!", Somaros growled. He began to pace. He looked at a part of the realm and a large tower began to form. After it was fully formed, he began to pull out support beams one by one, like Jenga. When it finally toppled, he looked somewhat calmer. "Well, at least you let them know. I know my daughter and Mentsomnios will hatch some sort of plan."

"I can't be for sure, but I think HE is more powerful this time around. New and Improved for Round 2!", IT jumbled.

"Oh, that is such a sweet thought! HIM slowly and tactically taking out all of those peaceful citizens. Why!? BECAUSE THAT IS THE ONLY THING HE KNOWS HOW TO DO. AND WHAT KIND OF DIP-SHIT WOULD PROGRAM SOMETHING LIKE THAT!? THE ONE AND ONLY IT OF COURSE!", Somaros shouted. IT looked on with patience. Somaros turned on IT. He began to advance toward IT. Though IT was powerful, he couldn't do anything to Somaros in this realm. Not without 100 percent chance of suicide. IT could only back up. "NOW I GET TO HAVE A FRONT ROW SEAT TO MY OWN DAUGHTER'S DEMISE! AND THERE IS NO WAY I CAN STOP IT FROM HAPPENING!"

"There is.", IT said under his breath.

"I... what?", Somaros asked.

"There is. But you have to trust me! It is our only way out!"

"But I can't! What would make you think that after half a second of thought versus the death of a race would make me change my mind?" (Remember, time passes slowly in this realm!)

"I didn't. But you must know that I can deliver."

"Gah!", Somaros sighed.

"You must. Just think about it for a little while. When you make your decision, find me.", IT soothed. Then, with that, IT disappeared.

* * *

"More Watchers you say?", The Doctor, now awake, asked.

"Yep. Three of them.", Night responded.

"I knew I could trust my instinct!", Derpy said with glee.

"Still no one has explained to me what a Watcher is.", Rainbow Dash muttered.

"Same here!", Scootaloo agreed.

"Night, that is amazing! Where are they now. I...would...really.", Twilight started. She looked off into the distance behind Night. That is when Night heard it. The flapping of wings behind him. He turned around, only to find it was Fluttershy, and not what he had thought.

"Fluttershy?", Dash began. Her eyes began to well up. Twilight's did the same. Fluttershy landed beside Night, shook her head clear for a second, then walked up to her friends. She jumped a little when they both charged and embraced their friend.

"I-I th-thou-thought y-you we-were d-dead!", Twilight sobbed.

"I sa-saw you d-die with m-my own ey-eyes!", Dash cried.

"How di-did you sur...vive?", Twilight asked.

"My parents saved me. They took me far away.", Fluttershy responded calmly.

"But your parents died.", Spike said.

"My true parents.", Fluttershy corrected. Just then, Aquilios and Igniseria appeared behind their daughter. Aquilios looked just about ready to push Twilight and Dash aside, but held back with a stern look from Ignis. Spike's mouth hit the floor. The Doctor gazed up in amazement. Orange and Scoot stared on with awe. Derpy simply smiled. Pinkie came around the corner and froze in something like terror.

"Very nice to meet you all. Let me introduce us. I am Igniseria, Watcher of Fire, Heat, and Life. This is my husband Aquilios, Watcher of Cold, Ice, and Weather. And you already know our daughter, correct?", Ignis said.

"What are you doing here?", The Doctor asked.

"Oh Doctor, always asking questions. We are hear to help you. There is an ancient being on the loose. HE is very powerful. HE is dark, evil, and ruthless. HE will not stop until each and every one of you has been brutally murdered. But, HE is unstoppable.", Aquilios explained.

"Well, if HE is unstoppable, what can you possibly do to help us?", Twilight asked. Aquilios let out a growl and Twilight shrunk backwards.

"Aquilios! She was only asking a question! Christ! I am so sorry. We are here to protect you. It's the least we can do to make sure that you can get out alive. But HE is truly unstoppable.", Igniseria said soothingly.

"I beg to differ.", said a voice. It came from the direction. They all looked at her. At her hooves was the iron rod, and it was glowing. She shrugged, confused as everyone else.

"What do you mean you beg to differ? And who the hell are you!?", Aquilios asked impatiently.

"One second!", said the voice. Then a hologram of sorts appeared. In it, a shadowy humanoid figure stood. He had the air of someone calm, relaxed, prepared. "Aha!"

"YOU!", Aquilios screamed. He looked up at the sky and started yelling in tongue. Dark storm clouds began to form over them. Ignis pushed him down and trapped him with heat. The clouds disappeared.

"I knew you would react like that.", IT chuckled.

"What do you want?", Ignis asked.

"Nothing! I have only information to help you.", IT said.

"Like?", Spike asked.

"The fact that HE is not unstoppable.", IT chuckled. "Igniseria, who led you to believe such a thing."

"Well...?", Rainbow Dash sighed.

"Oh, Right! Can't stop him without information!", IT cried.

"Finally.", Dash scoffed.

"Wait. Tell me something first.", Night said.

"Yes?", IT responded.

"What are you? What is HE?", Night asked.

"Me? I am nothing. I am simply an entity. I have no explanation. There is no birth or death of me. I am simply an IT. HIM? He is a creation of mine. In an attempt to make a being as powerful as me, I made HIM. HE was like me except for one thing. HE was a coward. HE ran from fights that he thought WE were going to lose. I was a failure.", IT explained.

"Thank you. And now on to how we can beat HIM.", The Doctor said for Night.

"Fine. You...", IT started. Then the hologram disappeared, reverting to static before finally disappearing completely.

"Damn!", Spike cursed.

"Uh, guys!", Dash whimpered. Everyone looked at her. Her eyes kept flicking to the right. Everyone looked right. Sitting on the wall was a shadow. It had no form, with the only indication of it being sentient were eyes that were studying them. It moved and floated close to them.

"Well! This is quite the meet and greet! So nice to meet ya'll!", HE said.

"Go away, go away, leave me alone, leave me alone.", Dash cried under her breath.

"Rainbow Dash. How is it going girl. Having fun? No? Come on have some spirit will ya!", HE jeered.

Suddenly Pinkie rushed forward. Except, Rose had taken over once more.

"Master! Spare Me! Give me another chance! I promise I will complete the objective!", She begged. She laid down and begged like a dog.

"Oh, I have a lot in store for you! You will wish you never lived!", HE screamed.

"Please! Don't do this!", Rose cried.

"Leave her alone! If you want anyone, it's me!", Night screamed. HE looked at Night. A smile appeared and spread across the shadow.

"The great and powerful Mentsomnios, stranded on a worthless world! Why can't you just tear a hole in time and get out!? Oh, that's right. You don't remember anything! Let's restore some of those precious memories, shall we!?", HE said. Night began to convulse and was lifted off the ground. He saw the death of many Watchers, the life sucked out of them like soda from a cup sucked out by a straw. He saw them turn deathly pale and then crumble. There were hundreds, yet so little as 15 escaped. And he just watched. If anything, he was the coward. He let his peaceful kingdom fall into the hands of something evil. Why? Because he was to stunned to do anything. He thought of killing himself. HE lowered Night to the floor. Night walked toward a piece of broken glass. He began to pick it up and slit his throat.

"NO!", Fluttershy cried. She flew over and knocked the glass out of his hoof. She looked into his eyes. "Don't listen! He is feeding you false memories! Come back to me! Come back to us!", she soothed. Night blinked.

"I have to do this. I let my people down.", he responded. Fluttershy gasped a little. She started to cry. She leaned forward and kissed Night on the cheek. Then she flew over to the others to watch the death of her king. Night raised the glass once more. But then, he stopped in mid-lift. He began to shake his head. Then his hoof began to shake and the glass dropped and shattered. He looked at HIM.

"If you ever try that again you piece of shit, I swear to God, I will murder you!", Night screamed.

"What? Like this?", HE asked. HE blinked his eyes. Night still stared. "WHAT!? HOW!?"

"I trained my mind dip-shit. It won't work while I am focused.", Night growled.

"Humph! I will leave now! But trust me, you are going to wish I didn't leave. I have a new target!", HE said. Just before he disappeared, he looked at Orange. She felt a chill pass over her body. Then, HE was gone. Night walked over to the others. Fluttershy looked away, embarrassed. The others just stared, their eyes watching Night. Ignis had let Aquilios up a while ago.

"You? That is not possible. It just isn't! First you shake off his influence, then you block your mind from it. How!?", Aquilios questioned.

"I didn't do it alone. I had help.", Night stated.

"From?", Dash asked.

"Fluttershy. Her kiss created a bump in the memories, like a bump in the road. When my mind hit that bump, it jolted my back to reality. Then, all I had to do was focus my mind on thoughts of family and friends. That blocked his influence out entirely.", Night explained. He turned to face Fluttershy. "Thanks. I couldn't have done it without you."

Fluttershy blushed. "Y-Your welcome.", she whispered. She smiled and Night got the same feeling from earlier. Aquilios saw this and began to anger, but Ignis stopped him from doing anything rash.

"Well, now we know who HE is. And it seems like HE has quite a lot of power.", The Doctor. Pinkie walked up at that moment. She was crying and looked just about ready to give up on everything.

"HE is a being uncontrolled. Nothing can sustain HIM, not even HIS creator. HE took control of my mind and trained Rose as a killer. I don't know of any way to stop HIM. There is no mind to control, or heart to stop. HE is truly a dark, lifeless being.", She babbled to no one in particular. Aquilios was focused intently on her. Night saw distrust in his eyes and prayed he didn't lash out on poor, confused, and defenseless Pinkie.

"Sweetie, you have given us information that might just be useful. But, you look like crap! You need rest. Go, find somewhere to sleep. Your mind has been thrashed by HIM.", Orange said. She looked at Twilight for help. Twilight understood and led Pinkie to the shelter.

"What are we going to do about this? We have the devil personified stalking us, with no way to kill HIM. If anyone has a good idea, now would be the time to say it!", Dash shouted hysterically. Aquilios swung his head around and glared at her. She backed up and smiled innocently, trying to keep her cool.

"There is not much we can do. We just wait until answers are revealed to us.", Fluttershy stated. Night smiled. For once, someone who thought properly other than Orange.

"Fluttershy has got a point. IT said that HE _is_ stoppable. We simply must wait until contact is re-established with IT. Then we will get our answers.", Night said. Orange nodded in agreement. Everypony else looked at one another like they had no idea who the other was. Finally, Ignis looked up.

"I am going with it. It sounds logical, and not only that, it might just be our only option!", she announced. Aquilios grunted in disapproval but still nodded in agreement. The Doctor smiled, a yes. Twilight returned and nodded, having heard from a distance. Derpy was no where to be seen, probably gone while HE had appeared. There was only Dash left. She was huddled in against a wall, her eyes darting from pony to pony. She was terrified of something. She was terrified of...them?

"Dash? Are you okay?", Twilight asked her friend. In response, Dash just whimpered.

"Sweetheart, you have to tell us what is going on. We can't help you if you don't.", Orange soothed. She walked up to Dash, who in return, backed up further against the wall. And that is when Orange saw it. Her reflection in Dash's eyes. She didn't see her orange neon color. She saw a dark figure with shadows flicking out of it. The same with everypony else. "Night? If you are Mentsomnios, and if I remember my roots correctly, put her to sleep."

"Are you kidding me!? I don't even know my own power! Let alone my entire life as a Watcher!", Night yelled. Orange stood unflinching.

"She has got a point. Somni means sleep in Latin. You are the Watcher of Sleep and who knows what else. Think deep Night. Traverse your mind like a file cabinet.", The Doctor said. Night closed his eyes. He imagined his memories as a big storage cabinet. Then, it came to him. He opened his eyes.

"Dash? I need you to look into my eyes. It is the only way I can help.", Night ordered. Dash shook her head.

"No. You will poison me. You will thrash and beat and molest my mind. I will not listen!", she whimpered under her breath. Night charged up to her and forced her to look into his eyes. Her face instantly relaxed. She closed her eyes and re-opened them. She looked around and relaxed even further when she saw her friends. Then she closed her eyes once more and went to sleep. She started to tip, but Orange and Twilight ran over and supported her. Together, they carried her to the shelter. The Doctor wandered off, searching for some new adventure. Aquilios and Ignis walked toward the square, bickering about some new idea for peace in the land. That left Fluttershy and Night alone.

"You did it. You have begun to discover your power.", Fluttershy said.

"Come, let us walk. It is getting late, so we will have to rest soon.", Night said. He started walking toward the wall. Fluttershy walked after him.

"What are we going to do about Orange? She is obviously HIS next target. HE has already half-claimed Dash's mind. How will we protect her?"

"I don't know. We will figure something out. Have you ever taken the time to look up at the stars? You know, to just admire them? Admire their natural beauty and brilliance?"

Fluttershy leaned on Night. He didn't push her away.

"I don't know why, but I feel drawn to you. There some uncontrollable urge in my mind to always be there for you, always be there to help.", Fluttershy purred.

"I have something to show you. Follow me!", Night said. He took off towards a hill in the distance. Fluttershy followed him. When she arrived, Night was holding the most gorgeous flower she had ever seen. He gave it to her. It was a swirl of pink, red, and white put onto a rose.

"Oh my...", she gasped.

"When I went into your mind earlier, I learned that you liked roses. I had seen this on an earlier day, so I thought of giving it to you. You deserve it. Especially after helping me."

"Thank you. So much."

Night laid down on his back. Another night under the stars. Fluttershy blushed and then lay down next to him. He wrapped a wing around her and pulled her closer. Yeah another night under the stars, with the most beautiful girl in his life.

* * *

Twilight awoke in a panic. She was breathing heavily.

"No, no, no! No more death. Especially not Orange. She has done too much for us.", she cried aloud.

Orange sat up beside her.

"Twi, what are you talking about. You woke me up about a hour ago. You were crying and screaming bloody murder! And what do you mean by no more death? Especially me? Twi, did you dream about my death?", she asked.

"It was nothing. Just a bad dream. You shouldn't worry about it. Everything will be fine."

Orange had a twinge of doubt in her head, but it passed quickly. Twilight wouldn't lie to her. Right? She didn't want to believe it. Twilight laid back down. Orange was about to when they both heard a sound. It sounded like whispering. Twilight sat up.

"What was that?", she asked.

"Oh, it's just me.", said a voice. A shadow formed out of the wall. It had blood red eyes. HIM. Twilight shrieked and backed up. Orange stood in front of her, guarding her.

"Don't touch her! Take me instead. I will not let you do anything with her.", Orange growled.

"Oh? Do we have a fighter? I like fighters that much more!", HE said with glee. Orange walked toward HIM. She looked back. Twilight was starting to cry.

"Stay safe. Tell Night why I am gone. Help him. He has much he has on his mind.", she said calmly.

"NO! I CAN'T LET HIM TAKE YOU!", Twilight cried. Her eyes began to glow. She yelled.

* * *

An explosion went off somewhere in the town. Night and Fluttershy both awoke at the sound.

"What the...", Fluttershy began.

"Hell!?", Night finished. They saw smoke. It was coming from...the shelter!? "Oh no!" Night took off, Fluttershy following close behind. When they reached the shelter, HE was floating above it. Orange was suspended in the air next to him, knocked out. HE looked legitimately terrified. Twilight burst out of the shelter, eyes glowing dark purple and mouth curled into a snarl.

"That is one crazed bitch! Good luck with her!", HE snickered.

"NO MORE DEATH!", Twilight screamed. She yelled and a ball of light flew at HIM. HE dodged just barely. HE looked at Night once more. Then he was gone, Orange gone with him. Twilight slammed the ground then fell to it, sobbing. "No more death.", she choked. Spike ran out of the shelter and embraced his friend. They sat in silence, Twilight crying on Spike's shoulder.

"One of the only two ponies I actually trusted. And she is gone.", Night breathed. Fluttershy leaned on him, her only support in this time. Night was not letting her go, no matter if it meant the death or torturing of him. She was the last of whom he trusted. And he loved her.

* * *

_**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I know some of you might be confused. I meant for this. Don't send hate reviews for it. I will explain more over the next few chapters. And yes, it is going to be Fluttershy x Night. The idea of Watchers, IT, and HIM has been in my mind for a while. I will get more into that in the next chapter. But now, I am done until maybe MID-January. So thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed. Please review, any help is nice.**_

_**By the way...**_

_**HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!  
**_


	6. Chapter 4: The Girl

**The dreams at hand are the dreams at will. The dreams at will are the dreams of life. Therefore, the dreams at hand are the dreams of life.**

**When your loved one is hurting, comfort them. When they are laughing, laugh with them. When they back away from you, bring them back. These are the little things in life. Enjoy them before you lose them.**

* * *

"She's really gone. I didn't have time to save her.", Night whispered. Fluttershy looked up at him.

"I am so sorry for your loss. I know how good of friends you were.", she said softly.

"I just can't believe that she is gone. I had a friendship with her that no one else shared. I...I...", Night began to cry. Fluttershy nuzzled him and looked him in the eye.

"Hush now. We must live on. We have goals to reach. And we can't reach them without you. Please don't go suicidal on us again. You can't do that. Not now. Not ever.", Fluttershy soothed. Spike got up and ran inside the house. Twilight stayed on the ground, tears still streaming from her eyes.

"You are right.", Night replied. He kissed the top of her head. Fluttershy blushed. "That is why I like you. You and I think alike. The same went with Orange. Maybe she will find a way home? But anyway, I think I know just the thing to help us get out of this hell."

* * *

Orange awoke in a panic. She was in an operating room of sorts, strapped down onto a metal table. A bright light was shining down on her, forcing her to look down. To her right was a set of medical tools, ranging from scalpels and scissors to large saws. She looked forward at the sound of a cough. HE had taken the form of a human and was swinging a knife in his hand. HE smiled when she looked at him.

"Well, afternoon sunshine. I thought you would never wake!", HE got up and walked towards Orange.

"Wh-what are you going to do to me?", Orange asked. Her voice was strong but her mind was weak.

"All sorts of things! Starting with...Dissection!", HE grinned maniacally.

"What!? What kind of sick thing are you!? Dissecting innocent organisms, alive! Well not me, no sir!", Orange shouted proudly.

"Let's see what Mr. Fentanyl has to say on the matter.", HE grinned. HE pulled out a syringe filled with a liquid inside. HE jabbed it inside Orange and injected it into her.

"What!", Orange screamed. But then, she couldn't feel herself anymore. Everything below her head was numb. HE smiled at his work.

"Time for the process to begin."

"Please, no."

"Sorry.", HE said, looking legitimately sorrowful. Then, HE took his knife and punctured Orange's left bottom leg. She felt nothing. HE dragged the knife up to her belly. Her slit all of the way until her throat. He then removed the knife, releasing a spurt of blood. HE pried Orange's stomach open with his hands. More blood shot out. She heard a cracking sound as he broke her ribs, one by one. After that was finished, he could get to her innards. HE reached in and grabbed her lungs. "Won't be needing these." HE ripped them out and tossed them to the side. Orange only watched with tears. How she could still breathe was a mystery to her. HE reached in again and felt her heartbeat. Normal and relaxed, like any strong woman should be. HE caressed it and moved on to something else. HE found her stomach. HE used his knife to slit it open. HE held his hand over the wound. Stomach acid began to flow out of it. Some spilled over and began to slowly dissolve Orange. Then, HE pulled out a metal plate and began to crush every bone in Orange's body. Bone shrapnel flew onto her chest and face. After that, HE used his hands to tear open veins, arteries, and nerves. Her vision began to blur and fade. She was dying. Blood still spurting out onto both of them. Still, she felt nothing. She didn't feel the hand reaching for her intact backbone.

* * *

"Hurry up, damn it! HE is killing her!", Somaros growled.

"I'm trying! Gimme a second, will ya! Stuff like this takes time!", IT shouted back.

"We don't have a second! She will surely die at the pace you're moving!"

"Hold on! Almost got it!"

* * *

Orange's vision had begun to fade to black. HE had torn open her stomach and had sliced apart her organs. All that was left was her heart. Her pretty face was covered in blood, as was HE. HE positioned his knife over her heart. And then he jabbed, and missed! Orange was gone! She was there and then she wasn't. Then HE sensed something. A residual energy. A residual energy that only IT gave off.

"Old man, you win this time. But, don't plan on saving my next target. I guarantee you it won't work.", HE said. HE chuckled under HIS breath. Next time.

* * *

Orange had her eyes closed. When she opened them, she didn't see heaven or hell. She saw darkness. She felt her body. No openings, no blood, and feeling had returned. She had died, she concluded. She heard a sound to her left. She looked and saw the most amazing sight. She saw the shadowy humanoid form of IT. And then, next to IT was a wolf. A very large wolf. A very handsome wolf. He was about 5 feet tall. His entire body was black, save a few glowing baby blue spots on is body. And another thing, he had wings. Large, pronounced and proud. He cocked his head to the side at first, and then smiled and walked over to her. He used his wings to help her up.

"Good day. My name is Somaros. And you already know IT over there.", Somaros said casually. IT smiled and waved. Orange stared on, confused.

"What? Am-Am I dead? Where am I?", Orange asked.

"You are not dead sweetheart. But, you are no where. This is a realm of non-existence. You can do lots here, given that it chooses you to become a Creator. From there you can model anything, in the blink of an eye.", IT said. IT waved its hand and a small city appeared, complete with strange, monkey looking creatures. Then, IT waved its hand again, and the city began to fall apart, the villagers dissolving.

"B-but how? How am I alive?", Orange asked.

"IT pulled you in here just in time. One half second later, and you would be nothing but a corpse.", Somaros explained.

"What was that thing?", Orange asked.

"Well, he is of my creation. We prefer to call it HIM. But, his real name is Lo Kran. HE is nothing but condensed dark matter. A failed project. But a successful project at the same time. But at this time, that information doesn't matter. What matters is that you are alive, and not a rotting corpse on a medical bed.", IT said.

"You are right! I must tell Night! He will be so happy!", Orange cried. She ran blindly for a few feet then stopped. She turned to face Somaros and IT. "Is there any way out of HERE?"

"No.", IT said, wringing IT's hands. Orange looked down and started to cry.

""But, there is a way to tell Night that you are alive. Remember that metal pole?", Somaros asked.

"Yes?", Orange responded.

"We can communicate through that, but only for short periods of time. Would you like to talk to Mentsomnios?", IT asked.

* * *

Derpy was sitting by a small lake. She was using her power listen to it. She was communicating with the park around her. She laid back on the cool dirt, letting chills go through her body. A set of eyes appeared, not to far away. They watched Derpy for a second and then disappeared. Suddenly, Derpy lost her connection with the park. She heard a whirring noise to her right. She blinked and sat up. The metal pole was at her side. It was glowing and vibrating.

"Perfect timing.", she muttered. She yawned and stretched. Man, communing with nature really made you tired, especially in a place as peaceful as this lake side. She picked up the pole with her mouth. She shivered as a pleasantly warm feeling went through her body. She shook her head. And then she flew off to find Mentsomnios.

* * *

"There must be another way. A way more stealthy. The point of this operation is to seek-and-destroy silently and quickly.", Twilight pleaded.

"But there isn't! There is no other possible way to do this! If there was, I would've told you!", The Doctor yelled back.

"LISTEN TO ME DOCTOR! I HAVE SEEN TOO MANY DIE! MY ROLE HERE IS TO PROTECT AND ESCORT THESE INNOCENT PONIES OUT OF THIS DYING UNIVERSE! I WILL NOT HAVE ANYONE ELSE DIE BY A MISTAKE!", Night yelled.

"I don't think you understand! THERE IS NO OTHER WAY! THESE THINGS HAVE ARMOR AS THICK AS ROCK! THEY ONLY HAVE ONE WEAK SPOT! THE SMALL INDENT ON THEIR BACK! AND THERE IS ONLY ONE WAY TO PENETRATE THE ARMOR ON THEIR WEAK SPOT!", The Doctor shouted.

"FINE! We will stick with the original plan. But I swear to God , if one pony dies, I will...", Night trailed off, because he saw Derpy walking up. She had a very worried look on her face. And the metal rod glowing in her mouth.

"I must look really weird bringing it like this.", Derpy chuckled. Twilight smiled a little bit. Derpy set the rod down in front of the two stallions. They looked at each, hatred on their faces, and then they looked back at the pole. A fuzzy image appeared, depicting a pony.

"IT?", Night asked.

"Of course not!", a voice, feminine. It sounded like Orange!

"O-Orange? Is that you?", Twilight asked, her eyes glowing.

"Hello Twilight, Night, Doctor. And hello Derpy. Yes it is me.", Orange said. She smiled.

"How did you survive? I thought I had lost you forever!", Night asked.

"I didn't escape. I was helped by a helping hand.", Orange said. The image of IT and Somaros were projected next to that of Orange's. IT looked upset, but still acted happy. Somaros simply stared at Night.

"IT? You saved her?", Twilight asked.

"Yes. I guess I did.", IT said. The worry on IT's face became more visible. Only Night noticed.

"Orange, I am so glad that you are okay.", The Doctor said. Orange smiled once more.

"Yes I am fine. But I went through hell before reaching the well, as my mother used to say. HE is still out there. HIS name is Lo Kran. And HE is not going to stop until we are all dead. HE has horrible thoughts in his mind. HE will do things unimaginable to us all.", Orange said. Her vision clouded and she began to shiver. Somaros leaned toward her and whispered something in her ear. She nodded. "Unfortunately, we cannot keep the connection any longer. Night, I love you. Stay safe. Take care of Twilight and Fluttershy. For me. Goodbye." Then the image vanished.

"Orange...", Twilight breathed.

* * *

Pinkie was walking along when she saw something out of the corner of eye. She looked to her left. On a building there was a drawing. It depicted a star that had a circle going through it. Hope, Rose Red translated in Pinkie's head. When she got closer to it, it changed. One second, a square with an eye in it, the next, to a triangle with an X through it, after that, to a heart on a moon, and so many other things. As the images flashed by, Pinkie began to feel herself slipping away. She was lifted off the ground and was dragged toward the flashing images. A hole opened in the wall, and she was pulled inside. She looked around. Darkness. The hole closed behind her. Then, an image appeared and stayed. On it, two faces. One of them showed an adult woman, maybe around 22. She had dark blue eyes, fair skin, and her hair was dyed dark red at the bottom, getting lighter until it turned blonde at the roots. A name came to Pinkie's head. Roselia Righthart Edarte. Whatever that meant and whoever that was. The other girl looked about 8. She had stunning dark green eyes, with long brown hair, and fair skin. No name came to Pinkie's head. But then suddenly the image disappeared. In, its place, the younger girl from the image. She was wearing a beautiful flowing silver dress. She walked up to Pinkie. Pinkie felt frozen in place, unable to move. The girl stopped when she reached Pinkie. She ran a hand through Pinkie's mane. Pinkie instantly felt she could trust this girl. The girl smiled, a beautiful sunny smile.

"Hello Pinkamena. You have no need to worry.", She said. Her voice was like silk, and Pinkie knew she could trust her, truly. No one addressed her by that. Not unless they new about...back then.

"H-hello. M-my name is Pinkie. I-I-I...", Pinkie began. She started to shiver and cry. The girl placed her hands on Pinkie's head. Pinkie instantly felt calm. She briefly saw something in her head. Night and Fluttershy standing next to each other, smiles on their faces. Then it was gone. She came back to real life. The girl was searching her face.

"I know who you are Pinkamena. Now be calm. There are those who need you. Return to life, and make merry.", the girl said. She took off a necklace from around her neck. It was gorgeous! It was on a vine and mineral chain, with opals, pearls, and shells. The girl put it around Pinkie's head. Then she hugged her. She backed up and smiled. Pinkie blacked out.

* * *

When Pinkie awoke, she was on the ground. It had not gotten much later, maybe only an hour. Pinkie realized that she still had the necklace around her neck. She looked up to discover a confused Fluttershy staring down at her. Fluttershy crouched down, putting her head under Pinkie's belly and lifting, helping Pinkie up.

"You took quite a fall! I was walking by when I saw you collapse. You're head smacked into the ground. I thought you had surely cracked your head!", Fluttershy said, worry on her face.

"I didn't...", Pinkie started. Then pain blasted through her head. Well, maybe she did fall. Then she heard a voice in her head. The voice of the girl. The girl giggled a little bit.

"Woops! Forgot something! Give the necklace to Night Mist. He will know what to do.", the girl's voice said. Then nothing. But, the gears were grinding in Rose Red's mind. She saw a sign that disturbed her quite a bit. And she knew who would have the answer. She took over Pinkie's mind like a ninja, doing it quickly and quietly.

"Fluttershy, where is Twilight at the moment?", She asked.

"Asleep. She went home, saying she hadn't been feeling too good. She...", but Rose didn't hear anymore. She was already galloping towards the shelter.

* * *

Twilight was dreaming. She was in complete darkness. Then in front of her eyes, three figures appeared. Applejack and Rarity! And, between them, a little girl. She was wearing a long silver gown that stretched out behind her. Applejack was on her right. She was wearing a long white gown and had a black crown on her head that had Destiny printed on it in white. Rarity was on the girl's left. She had a long black gown and had a white crown on her head that had Fate printed across it in black. The girl walked forward. She had gorgeous dark green eyes and long dark brown hair that complemented her fair skin. She stopped about 6 feet from Twilight.

"Welcome to the dream Twilight Sparkle. We have been expecting you!", the girl said, smiling. Twilight backed up. She didn't know who this girl was, but still she felt unable to trust her. "Do not fear us. We do not mean you any harm. Come towards me, and discover what it means to trust." Twilight edged closer to the girl, slowly as to study her. She did not emit darkness or induce panic. She was calm and, in fact, made Twilight feel calmer the closer she got. Then she was right next to the girl. The girl extended her hands and placed them under Twilight's chin. Twilight looked up at the girl. She looked only about eight, as she was only a few inches taller than Twilight. The girl bent down and kissed Twilight on the forehead. Twilight felt as if she could float off the floor at that moment. It felt as if many weights had been lifted from her. The girl removed her hands from Twilight's head. She backed up.

"Wh-who are-are you?", Twilight asked. The girl chuckled, and Twilight almost laughed herself. The girl's voice and laugh were a smooth and soft as silk.

"That is something that doesn't matter. What does matter is that we can finally talk to you. That bastard Lo Kran has been blocking us out. We have a message for you. And for you only. There is only one other who would understand. You will find out who that is soon.", The girl said. Then she backed up to back in between Rarity and Applejack. Applejack walked forward. She looked Twilight in the eye.

**You are the golden key,  
The opener of many doors.**

**But you will see,  
That you will not go without wars.**

**Through each gate,  
of only one you can pass,**

**Awaits you a different fate,  
of which only one has soft grass.**

**Choose well,  
for once you go, you can't return.**

**Your mind he will sell,  
of which many will yearn.**

Then she backed up. Twilight was beginning to become frightened. Rarity walked forward. She locked eyes with Twilight.

**Two paths into the forest,  
****of which you will be no tourist.**

**Two paths to the sea,  
Where temptation will be.**

**One path into hell!  
Your chance, a misunderstood belle!**

Rarity was beginning to raise her voice. She started walking slowly towards Twilight.

**Three paths into the field!  
****Where she is your only shield!**

Rarity was almost face to face with Twilight now. "Rarity stop!", Twilight screamed. She began to cry.

**FORGIVE ME MY FRIEND,  
FOR I HAVE SINNED!**

**I CAN ONLY SEND,  
A HELPFUL WIND!**

Twilight was hunched up, fear in her eyes. Rarity walked up to her. She kissed her, and a cool wind seemed to quickly surround them and dissipate.

"Don't make my mistake. She is the only one who can help you. Follow her, and listen to her word.", Rarity said softly. She backed up next to the girl. The girl approached Twilight once more.

"I know you do not understand these things. But you will, in time. Now, sleep.", the girl said. She touched Twilight's head. Then the girl, Applejack, and Rarity disappeared. Twilight was left in darkness. Then a light appeared, like at the end of a tunnel. Twilight began walking towards it. When she got closer, she saw Pinkie's worried face. She began to gallop. When she hit the light, she awoke.

* * *

"Come on! Wake up you little bitch! I know that you are there!", Rose Red muttered under her breath. Twilight was convulsing on the bed. Then she stopped. Her eyes opened. And then she saw Rose. She jumped a little bit.

"Please don't hurt me! I-I didn't do anything.", Twilight cried.

Rose felt a pang of sympathy for Twilight in her dark and tortured mind. She was becoming more like that little pink whore Pinkie Pie. She had to get out of Pinkie's head before she became part of it.

"I am not here to hurt you, you stupid little twit. We have to talk.", Rose said with an edge in her voice. Twilight looked upset about being called a twit. She got up and out of the bed.

"If you want to talk, walk with me. I don't feel so good.", Twilight said. And it was true. She felt as if she might throw up. Her head felt light and her vision tottered and wobbled and blurred. She collapsed once on the way up and out of the shelter. If Rose hadn't been there, she might have stayed there for hours. Rose followed Twilight all of the way out of the shelter and the house. When she exited the house, Twilight made a left and another around the corner. Then she sat against the wall, eyes darting, trying to focus her vision.

"You know something.", Rose said, sympathy in her voice. DAMN! Pinkie had found Rose. They fought for control, Pinkie winning in the end by luring Rose into a crude mental cage. "Twilight, are you okay?"

"Yes. I... had a weird dream. I don't know what to make of it.", Twilight said.

"There was a girl in it?", Pinkie asked.

"Yes. Wait how did you...", Twilight began. Then she remembered what the girl said. There would be only one who understood her. Pinkie. Or Rose. Whoever had the dream.

"A girl of infinite complexity. Yet, still, so simple. Long brown hair with light fair skin. And eyes greener than Big...", Pinkie started. But stopped herself. She remember the fate of the Apples. So quick they lost everything. And then, everyone. Rose laughed at the burning thought. Pinkie remember that Big Mac and Twilight had become very good friends. When he died...well, Twilight almost burned down her home in rage. Such an innocent life, taken by creatures from the unknown. Twilight looked at Pinkie as if to say, Go ahead. Say the name. Say HIS name. I am alright. "Uh. What did you see in your dream Twi'."

"I saw Applejack and Rarity. And the girl. Applejack was on the girls right, wearing a long white gown with a black crown that had Destiny written in White upon it. Rarity was on the girls left, wearing a long black gown with a white crown that had Fate written in Black upon it. The girl gained my trust, then almost broke it. Applejack came forward. She told a poem about me being a golden key. A golden key that would decide the fate of all of us.", Twilight said. Rose had escaped, but was too engrossed in processing the story to attack Pinkie. "Then she backed up. Rarity walked up. She told a poem of all of the different possibilities of our fates. Then she...uh... kissed me. I don't know why. She said something about not making the mistakes she made. Then she backed up. The girl walked forward and told me I would understand the things I heard soon. The I woke up.", Twilight finalized. Rose was quite intrigued. They shared similar a dream. But who was this girl? Pinkie began to walk away when Rose remembered the real reason she came to see Twilight. She took over. She headed back to Twilight, who was still dazed.

"I saw something. A sign. It was a moon with heart on it. I know you know what this means.", Rose growled.

"The moon's shadow will corrupt the heart. But the light of it will nurture.", Twilight said instinctively. Rose locked eyes with Twilight.

"What did you just say?"

"The shadow of evil will destroy the bond. But the one who is caring will fix it.", Twilight said, trying to explain.

"The shadow of evil?", Rose wondered. Then it struck her. The heart. Philanthria. Fluttershy. The moon. Dark side for Master. Light for Mentsomnios. Night Mist. The moon's shadow will corrupt the heart. Fluttershy. But the light, Night, will nurture it. But that means... "Shit. Twilight be good. Take care of yourself." Then Pinkie forced Rose to kiss Twilight on her head just before heading off. This got them into another scuffle that Pinkie won.

* * *

Somaros was watching Orange as she slept. She was twitching in her sleep, her usually pretty smile curled into a grimace. She screamed at random intervals. Somaros was worried about her. He was worried that her dreams were about HIM. Lo Kran could do those things. And they were like a disease. They started as dreams but slowly took over the body and mind, like a slow acting virus or poison. And once the grip had been established, it was iron, locked in place until the organism killed itself or died. She cried out "Scootaloo" once, twice, thrice, and then she stilled. She smiled and and relaxed. Then her eyes shot open in surprise. She jumped up and stood breathing heavily for a minute. Then she calmed once more and walked over to Somaros. She sat next to him. There they sat in silence for some time before Orange broke the silence.

"You watch me when I sleep. Why?", she asked.

"I worry for you. You had a encounter with Lo Kran closer than anyone has survived. I worry that he is sending you bad dreams.", Somaros responded.

"Then you mustn't worry. I have only had dreams...something I don't want to talk about.", Orange said.

"You must tell me. It is the only way I can be sure.", Somaros countered.

"Fine. You don't want to hear this.", Orange sighed. When Somaros didn't respond, she continued. "I was in the middle of a circle of crosses. Each one had either a pony or a human on it. They were all bare, spare the leather cloaks and dresses. Each one had a sign on their head. They were all silent. That is, until this girl walked into the circle. She had long brown hair with fair skin. And unbelievably forest green eyes. She had Scootaloo by her side. When she walked into the circle, the humans and ponies both began to cheer and scream. It was deafening. The girl was reaching out for me when darkness enveloped me. Then I saw something move in the dark. A face appeared. It was an adult. She had long hair that was blonde at the roots but progressed to dark red. She looked up.

'Who the hell are you?', she asked. I backed up slightly. 'What the hell are you doing here? Who Are You!?', she asked once more. Then I was back in the circle. The girl reached out for me again.

'Take my hand!', she shouted. I reached. I felt herself slipping away again. Just before I was whisked away again, the girl latched onto my hoof. I didn't disappear. But the girl fell in pain. She clutched her head. I walked over to her. She looked up at me. There was hatred in her eyes. She said one thing. 'Go. Before it is to late.' Then I felt happiness sweep through me. And then I awoke."

"You were right. I don't want to hear that. We need to help you. But I fear it is too late.", Somaros grunted.

"But it wasn't HIM that sent the dreams.", Orange said.

"What?", Somaros asked. He looked inquisitively at Orange.

"HE didn't send them. I know it.", Orange responded.

"And how exactly do you know this?", Somaros asked coldly.

"Twilight wasn't in them.", Orange said softly, blushing.

* * *

Night was walking alone. He had an hour until the meeting. By this time, everyone would know about it. So why not walk and think about things? He had been wandering ever since he had sent The Doctor and Derpy to tell the survivors. Then he heard a sound. He looked in the direction of the noise, eyes narrowed. Then Pinkie barreled around the corner. She came at him with such speed he had no time to react. So he stood still and took the blow. It felt like getting shot, which he would know because he was shot when he was younger. The blow knocked him off his hooves and his wings were the only things that kept him from smacking into the ground. He got up and dusted him self off with his wings. He then proceeded to glare at a smiling, blushing Pinkie.

"What the hell was that for?" Night asked calmly. He was already bruising.

"I...uh...um...To get your attention!", Pinkie cried happily.

"You do realize you could have just tapped me or said my name, right?", Night asked.

"Yeah. Sorry! Wasn't really thinking.", Pinkie apologized.

"So what's the rush?", Night asked.

Pinkie's face went grim. "She is getting worse."

"Shit. How do you know?"

"I...well...Rose felt it. She heightened my senses for a time, allowing me to feel it. It was like a shock wave. It hit me like a brick, knocking me breathless. Then Rose began to panic. She kept saying 'No, no! It is too soon. It is happening too fast.' I think I know what she is talking about."

"The decay. It is speeding up."

"Night! Please! We must find something to do! I have caused too much death! There must be something we can do!"

"I am afraid that there is nothing we can do! It might be too late for her." Night put his wing over Pinkie and pulled her closer. Pinkie accepted the comfort and leaned on Night. "But, I will do everything I can to get everyone else out. I promise. For you." Pinkie sighed and closed her eyes. She felt safe under Night's wing, her horrible memories pulled out like a filter.

"I will do anything I can to help.", said a female voice. Night looked over into the shadows. Silver found Light Blue in them.

"Luna?", Night asked.

"Chance!?", Luna cried. She galloped out of the shadows and towards Night. Pinkie backed up. They knew each other. But how? And Luna called Night...Chance? So many confusing questions. Luna embraced Night.

"Luna, is that really you?", Night asked.

"Yes! I am here! I survived!", Luna cried. She was tearing up. Night felt something in his head click. Like a key turning. Then he remembered. Everything. Luna had been the key to his memories. Night kissed Luna on the forehead.

"Yes, you did. What happened after those long years? After you left. After I left.", Night asked.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"I don't mean to barge in, but how do you two know each other? Especially because you seem...Intimate.", Pinkie asked. Luna let go of her embrace. Night looked at Pinkie, a smile on his face.

"I have known Luna for many years. I met her at the beginning of that wretched imprisonment on the moon. I stayed with her. We shared secrets and truths, so many things we learned about each other. We made a pact to never leave the other until Luna's time came to leave. From then our relationship skyrocketed. The best way I could describe it is that we were only a little more than friends, yet we were closer than man and wife, brother and sister. And I hope we still are. One thousand years I stayed with her. And I don't regret a single minute. All because I got to know Luna.", Night said. Luna smiled and kissed him. He blushed. Pinkie processed. They didn't act as if they were any more than just small time lovers. So Night was true in saying that they weren't majorly intimate.

"Why did she call you Chance?", Pinkie asked.

"I had to come up with a name for him. Mentsomnios got tiring. So I named him the first thing that came to mind. Which was Chance. He didn't seem to mind.", Luna said. She chuckled. She seemed oddly contrasting to the calm and quite Night, but at the same time, made for him.

"What has you in such a rush to help us?", Night asked, his face becoming steel once more.

"Chance, I am so sorry.", Luna said sadly. She held up a hoof. A little bit of it crumbled to dust. The entire bottom was pale and cracking. Night and Pinkie looked at each other, horror in their eyes. "It's happening to me too."

* * *

The Doctor was wandering the town. He and Derpy had finished telling everyone some time ago. Derpy was walking beside him. They had not spoken to each other at all during the entire walk. Then Derpy stopped. The Doctor walked ahead a few steps before realizing this. He turned around. Derpy's eyes and mane began to glow.

"Derpy, are you alright?", he asked.

"Why is it that you fear Doctor?", Derpy asked. "Is it fear that you will lose someone? Or is it fear of me? And if so, why do you fear me? Is it because I am more powerful than you? Is it because there are things that you won't say?" The Doctor felt something tugging towards Derpy inside him. He made sure to keep his distance from Derpy.

"Derpy, come out. Fight whatever is happening to you.", The Doctor said.

"Nothing is happening to me Doctor. I have sensed fear inside you every time we are close. It is obvious that you fear me. But why?", Derpy asked coldy.

"I don't fear you. You just remind me of things...things I would rather forget.", The Doctor said. He shivered as a chill went down his spine. His precious Rose. Gone forever.

"Hush! We are being watched.", Derpy said sternly. She looked up towards a hill.

* * *

Applebloom watched from the hillside. She knew Aesthetia felt her. But she wouldn't see her. Or her escort. Applebloom was cursed to be forever young. Never to age past this. Her sister would have been envious. But her "sister" was dead. As was her "brother".

"The time is near.", Applebloom said. A tall black pony appeared behind her. He walked to her side. He had no Mark. He was all black, save his burning golden eyes. On his back, he carried a scythe. The blade was wicked sharp. It glowed with some purplish-blue internal glow. The staff itself was a dark brown with signs, symbols, and markings carved into it.

"How do you know this?", he asked.

"I can feel it. Remember, don't reveal who you are. Lead them home. Make sure they are safe. And follow them.", Applebloom responded. "Also, HE is coming."

"Lo Kran?"

"No. The other."

"You mean, HE is alive!?", the stallion asked excitedly.

"Yes. HE has been all this time. The question is, are they ready?"

"Right. Now, how about we go?", the stallion asked.

"You have a point. Lo Kran will be on the hunt tonight. We would make tasty morsels. That is, if he could defeat both of us.", Applebloom said, chuckling.

* * *

**One Hour Later**

* * *

Night watched as the last of the ponies filed into the center area. Twilight and Celestia sat behind him. Luna had disappeared just before the meeting, saying she wasn't ready to reveal herself to her sister. As soon as the last pony found a spot, Night started.

"Hello everyone. You all know why we are here. We are here to discuss our plan of escape. Outside, we are surrounded by those things. Now, they are planning to attack. Suppress us. I have a gut feeling that a being by the name of Lo Kran is controlling them. The Doctor and I think we found a way to stop these things. But this chance requires work and cooperation. We have to make a bomb. Thirty of them to be exact. We are going to need many materials. We need at least three hundred pounds of sand, some flint, some glass, and string. This is going to be a tough project for us, I know. But it might just be our only way out.", Night shouted out to the crowd. Everypony hushed after the word bomb. Suddenly, Celestia got up. She walked up next to Night.

"Um, I know you are trying to help, but isn't this risky? These are my people, and I won't let some ragtag outsider tell them what to do.", she said. Night turned on her so fast that she fell backwards.

"Well let's hear your splendid idea then! Go ahead! Tell us! Enlighten us!" Night yelled. The princess whimpered.

"I didn't mean it like that...", Celestia started.

"No! Go on! Tell us! What's that? You don't have anything better? Then shut up! You may have once ruled this town, but no more! Times have changed. If we could come up with any other way, we would say it. But, there is no other way. You may have been a princess, but now you are nothing more than a peasant. You no longer rule, and those things can't be talked out of killing us. So back off, and, I suggest you keep your mouth shut unless you have something useful to say.", Night said, calming down. Celestia got up and backed off. She sat behind Night once more, silent. Night turned back to the assembled crowd. "Does any one else want to throw their ideas into the air? Just a hint? No? Now, CAN WE GET THIS MEETING GOING!?", Night asked. He was about to start once more when a pony interrupted him.

"Hey! You can't talk to her like that! Just because you have an all-mighty plan to get us out of here, doesn't mean you can treat our Princess like trash!", said the stallion. Night looked him in the eyes. He jumped off the ledge he was on, and using his wings to carry him to in front of the stallion, slamming into the ground in front of the stallion. The stallion backed up slightly.

"Know what I think of that? I think you are just a lousy PIECE OF SHIT! We are in a crisis right now! And what do you worry about? The danger at hand? No! The plan? No! You focus on how I treat your Princess. For all I care, the world could be just about to be destroyed, and you would be sitting with your tail between your legs. And what would you ask, even if the answer is right in front of you? You would ask, What would Celestia do!? Now, if you are going to give me an idea, speak up! If not,", Night leaned in close to the stallion. The stallion was breaking out in a cold sweat. "Then shut the hell up." Night turned away, disgusted. He flew back to the ledge. He turned back to the crowd once more.

"Just listen to him! Sure he may be a stranger, but look! He has brought us all together. Do you think you would be alive if it wasn't for him? Give him a chance. He knows what he is doing.", Twilight said. After a moment of agreeing, the crowd gave Night their full attention. Night looked back at Twilight, a smile of respect on his face. Twilight smiled back. Night looked back at the crowd.

"We must cover land after we destroy those things. But there is a problem. Along with them, they brought an army. Along with the materials, we need a small militia. A small group of ponies strong enough to fight. We will have to fight this army. We will defeat them, but only if we work together. For the bombs, sand shouldn't be hard. Glass and string also shouldn't be difficult. Flint will be difficult. A job for the pegasi. There is a vein outside of town. Form groups and get working. We have three days time to finish the bombs. On the night of the third day we must attack. Now, disperse!", Night shouted. The crowd obeyed, leaving with talk of finally being free. "Doctor, Twilight, and Celestia, stay. I need to talk to you." The Doctor separated from a small group of ponies and walked toward the trio.

"Yes?", he asked when he reached them.

"The bombs will work well enough, but, we need a way to light them near simultaneously. We can't light them manually. It is too risky. Too big of a chance to get the timing wrong.", Night explained.

"Hmm. Wait! I know a particularly sticky substance that burns extremely quickly. Because of its sticky properties, we can run it up the creatures backs to the string. That way, we can make a circle around the wall, with small paths leading to each creature and the bomb on their backs. That would work, right?", Twilight suggested.

"That sounds perfect! But to circle the wall, we need a lot of the stuff.", Night said gruffly.

"I know a natural deposit near here. It should have enough for our needs.", Twilight replied.

"Well then! It seems we are closer...to...to...what?", Night asked out loud. The other three followed his gaze to a building not far off. The air above it seemed to be fluctuating and bending. All of a sudden, four of the black horse looking creatures materialized on the building. Only the lead was visible after they fell out the air, but the other three were there. Twilight stifled a scream. Then, they spoke in unison.

"We are The Righteous! We are the holier beings! We will cleanse this world of all its contaminated population! We...", The Righteous started. But then, they were cut off by a shock wave that seemed to originate from the center of the roof of the building they were on. The only one visible was vaporized, and another took his place in front.

"Are getting sick of listening to the monotonous drone of those beasts.", said the only remaining Righteous. He jumped off the building and plummeted to the ground. Just before he hit the ground, his form shifted into that of a wood pecker. He spread his wings and rocketed upward. He landed and perched on Night's head. Night stifled a laugh. This was really awkward.

"Uh, who exactly are you?", Celestia asked. She looked extremely puzzled.

"Please, just call me the Doppelganger. I prefer that.", the bird said.

"Okay, Doppelganger, would you get off my head please.", Night growled. He was bit annoyed now. The Doppelganger kept bouncing on his head. He leaned over and met eyes with Night's.

"Oh, come on now, don't be down! I am just a little clown!", The Doppelganger trilled. He then proceeded to piss off Night even more by pecking him in the head a few times. Night growled when he felt blood running down his head. The Doppelganger jumped off Night's head. Then, they were suddenly two Twilights.

"What the?", said the real Twilight. Or was it the fake?

"There is only one way to stop the horrors.", said the other Twilight. Definitely the fake. The the fake jumped and changed into Celestia.

"A child awaits at the end of the line.", said the fake Celestia. Then another jump towards The Doctor and now there were two Doctors.

"Hurry up and figure out the puzzle.", said the fake Doctor. Another jump and now there was a Two Tailed White Fox.

"Your time is running out! Tick Tock, Tick Tock!", said The Doppelganger. Then he turned into a bird and flew off. The Doctor watched as he flew off, confusion and annoyance on his face.

"Just leave. I...need a little time to think over things. I have a very bad feeling we are going to run into something more evil than we thought.", Night sighed. Celestia looked at him funny but plodded off. The Doctor walked off without a word. But Twilight didn't move.

"Tell me what is on your mind.", she demanded, but without an edge in her voice.

"No. It is nothing.", Night said, turning away.

"You must get it off your mind.", Twilight replied.

"I said leave me alone!", Night growled. He flew off, leaving Twilight in the dust.

* * *

Fluttershy was far away from everyone else. She had ran after the meeting had ended. It was just too much for her. She was roaming a part of town she hadn't been in since The Assault. Then she heard a whisper to her left. She looked to find a human leaning against the wall. He was watching her very intently.

"Hello?", Fluttershy asked. The human walked out of the shadows. He was about six feet tall. He had a short cropped beard and short curly black hair. He was wearing a long jacket and slacks of some sort. He had kind brown eyes.

"Hello Philanthria. How are you doing this fine day?", he asked.

"Uh...good I guess. But who are you?", Fluttershy asked.

"Oh! Did I forget to introduce myself? How rude of me! My name is Demeter. I have been watching you very closely lately. I see potential in you.", Demeter said. He held out a hand. Fluttershy held out a hoof and he shook it. "So nice to finally meet you. I see you have taken all this, how should I call it? Hubbub...very well."

"Nice to meet you too, I think?", Fluttershy asked. She chuckled a little bit. This man had an air around him that calmed her.

"I am an alchemist. I master in the art and science of alchemy. And I have noticed that things are not exactly going good for you all. So I decided it was finally time to show our faces.", Demeter said kindly.

"Our?", Fluttershy asked.

"Oh damn! I did it again. I would like you to meet my apprentice Moon Dust.", Demeter said. A black pony walked out of the shadows. She was quite beautiful. Her mane and tail were white, as were the bottoms of her hooves. Her eyes were a light leaf green. She smiled. She spread white tipped wings out and bowed to Fluttershy.

"A Watcher! In the flesh! What an amazing discovery! You outdid yourself this time Demeter.", Moon Dust said, still smiling. She got up and held out a hoof. "The name's Moon Dust. Demeter told me all about his studies of the Watchers. He told me that my mother, whom he had known, was not telling fairy tales about the Watchers. I have worked with Demeter for many hundreds of years. But, our stories are for later. Now, we must help you."

"She is right. Now is not the time for talking.", Demeter said seriously. He was about to continue, but then he was almost completely enveloped in ice. The same went for Moon Dust. Aquilios rocketed out of the sky. He landed in front of Fluttershy, protecting her.

"Get the hell away from my daughter!", he growled defensively.

"Aquilios! Has your memory done you wrong? Or are you still overprotective of your daughter?", Demeter said calmly. Aquilios looked at him like he was crazy. Then recognition swept over his face.

"Demeter? You lucky little bastard. I thought that stunt you had pulled two thousand years ago had killed you.", he said casually. The ice melted away from Moon Dust and Demeter. Moon Dust preened ice shards out of her wings and glared at Aquilios.

"No. But you are in more danger than you could even begin to believe.", Demeter said coldly. Aquilios chuckled.

"Nothing is touching my daughter. I can assure you that.", he snickered.

"But Aquilios, there is more than you think at play. Those things, the Ki Klon (Kee KlOn), have invested part of their body to arcane energy. Their weapons will tear a hole in you now. They will kill you on sight.", Demeter said urgently.

"That is not possible. Energy like that hasn't existed for billions of years.", Aquilios scoffed.

"Like Lo Kran?", Moon Dust asked. This caused a small pause in Aquilios. "Demeter has been studying these things ever since they have arrived. Don't try to deny his knowledge."

"Okay, fine. You got me. But still, that isn't good news.", Aquilios growled.

"I know it is not good news!", Demeter said coldly. "What the fuck do you think I have been trying to tell you!?"

"I...", Aquilios started.

"Father, just let them finish. He obviously has something important to say.", Fluttershy said quietly.

"Thank you Philanthria. But, we have more bad news. Lo Kran is gathering up more of an army. More things in which we will have to fight. And I don't think those Ki Klon are going to wait much longer.", Demeter explained.

"News is news, but you should tell this to Night.", Fluttershy suggested. Demeter gave her a look of confusion. "Mentsomnios."

"Oh! Okay. Where shall I find him?", Demeter asked. Then, all of them heard a bang. They looked up to see a white point hurtle through the air. The air behind it seemed to shiver and shine, as if filled with little stars. Moon Dust pointed a hoof in the direction it was going.

"Found him.", she said, rolling her eyes. A pause. "Can we go now? I feel like I am being watched. This place is giving me the creeps."

* * *

Above, on the roof tops, two people watched the four talk and walk away. One of the people was a woman, with long pepper and salt hair. She was standing near the edge of the building. Robotic wings stretched out behind her. In her hands was a large scythe, its blade clear like glass. She was wearing all black, including a black veil. The other person was squatting on the edge of the building. His hair was blonde, buzzed short. He was wearing a brown leather coat, in which many bullets were held. He had jeans on, torn and ripped near his sneakers. In his hand was a rifle, with a modified scope. He lowered the rifle as soon as the four below left. He looked at the woman and nodded.

"Got what we needed?", she asked.

"Yes, maybe even more.", said the man.

"Good. Should we leave?"

"Yes. We must bring back our data."

Then the man and woman disappeared, not a trace of them left on the roof top.

* * *

Twilight was walking through the town. She was wondering why Night had gotten so mad at her. There was one thing she did know though. Night's eyes had changed from silver to gold when he shouted at her. Something had changed in him. Something had possessed him. Twilight would have finished the thought, if it weren't that everything seemed to blur and the sky went dark.

"Twilight...", said a voice. It sounded like hers, except a little distorted. It came from her left. Twilight looked, and she could have swore she saw herself. Like another self. The Doppelganger. She looked forward, only to smack face first into an object. Everything around her went black. She got up and backed up to get a better look a the object. It looked like a leaf with its sides curled inward and the top split in half. She jumped when it suddenly began to glow with pale, sky blue light.

"Twilight...", said the voice again. It was louder, closer.

"W-What do you want?", Twilight asked the voice. She backed up more, backing up right into a spike. She jumped forward and whirled around. It wasn't a spike she had backed up into. It was a horn. The horn of a unicorn. The horn of herself. Twilight almost swooned. She was looking at her self, but at a distorted version. The mirror image had a longer, sharper horn which blazed the colors of fire. The skin and hair were a tad darker too. Also, it glowed with the same blue light as the object. But the real difference, the one that scared Twilight, was the eyes. When the mirror image opened its eyes, they were not soft Violet. The pupil was a slit and the iris was a golden bronze. The eyes of a snake.

"Twilight...", said the mirror image.

"What are you?", Twilight asked, fear clutching her body.

"That is like asking a tree what it is, or a dog, or a cat. You can do whatever you want to them, but they still are what they are. With that said, I am you, but I am not you.", said the mirror Twilight in a sing-songy voice. She had the face of mockery visible on her face.

"You are not me! Doppelganger, stop it!", Twilight pleaded.

"He does not matter. I have things to tell you. So listen close and heed well.", the mirror Twilight replied.

"Stop this! Please! I don't know what is going on, but I am scared.", Twilight cried. She shivered as the cold snake eyes searched every inch of her body.

"The Time of the Dream is nearing. There is no escaping it, and no one can stop it. All will be affected, but none will die. Do not fear this time, for you will learn what your purpose is.", the mirror Twilight said quietly. She looked Twilight in the eyes.

"What? What do you mean, the Time of the Dream?", Twilight asked angrily. The mirror Twilight did not respond. "Tell me!"

_Escape...Hell...Dream_

The mirror Twilight looked at the object.

"It has spoken...to you.", said the mirror Twilight. She looked back at Twilight and began to laugh. A maniacal, tittering laugh.

"What is so funny?", Twilight asked. The mirror Twilight only laughed louder.

_He comes. Prepare for his arrival._

"Goodbye, Twilight.", said the mirror Twilight. She laughed more. Everything went black for Twilight. The snake eyes reappeared in the darkness. "By the way, you can call me Mμ." Then Twilight blacked out, this time falling to the ground.

* * *

Moon Dust had been watching. She had not seen the object or Mμ. All she saw was Twilight standing in the middle of the road, apparently talking to herself. Moon Dust huffed.

"Weird little bitch is what you are.", she mumbled to herself. At this she laughed quietly to herself. She stared on with indifference as Twilight bloodied her head on a sharp rock.

* * *

The sun was setting, almost out of view. Darkness was beginning to crawl into the sky. Demeter sat on the wall. There was much on his mind, and he had no one to tell it too. He took out a jade box.

"What would happen if I threw this over the edge? Smash it. before I ever saw its contents?", he asked out loud.

"What is that in your hands Demeter?", asked a female voice. Demeter hid the box away.

"Nothing.", he replied sternly. He looked right. Sitting at his side was a fox. Her tail and fur seemed to be made of fire it self. Her eyes blazed red, glowing with some internal light. Flames licked off her tail, ears, and snout.

"Igniseria, what are you doing here?", Demeter asked.

"I saw you sitting on the edge. Aquilios told me that you were here, so I decided to pay you a visit.", Igniseria responded cheerfully. Demeter didn't reply. "What is wrong?"

"I don't know.", Demeter replied after a short time of silence.

"You don't know?"

"I just don't understand the reasoning behind...Oh my god!", Demeter excalimed.

"What is it?", Igniseria asked. She smirked. "You figured it out didn't you?" Demeter nodded. "You always do."

"Ignis, we are in deep shit.", Demeter whispered gravely.

"Care to explain?"

"It all starts with Night's arrival. He arrives at perfect timing. He sees Rose, and meets Twilight. Twilight takes him home, not coincidentally on the same night Rose planned to pay Twilight a "visit." Rose finds Night with them, and realizes his mind is weak. She burrows into it and takes some of the reins. Night endures a week long fight with her in a "coma." When he wakes up, Twilight receives a message from the princess. Twilight tells the princess and those with her to come to the town. They arrive and the wall upon which we sit is built. It keeps terror out, but locks them in. Lo Kran appears with an army, big enough to wipe out the survivors. We devise a plan to stop them, but it is risky. Do you see what it all leads up to?", Demeter asked gravely.

"My god... We are trapped here! HE is going to kill those who go out to kill the Ki Klon. As soon as that force is deceased, including Night Mist, everyone else will be defenseless! HE is going to slaughter us!"

"Exactly! So now, I don't know what we do.", Demeter replied.

"Uh...", Igniseria said aloud.

"But I do have this...", Demeter said thoughtfully. He pulled out the jade box again.

"What is in there?", Igniseria asked.

"I don't know.", Demeter huffed. He tittered a little bit.

"Do you want to see?", Igniseria asked.

"When the time is right, yes.", Demeter said. Just then, the sun reappeared in a small crack in the hills beyond. The slit of light hit the jade box. The patterns on it began to swirl and dance. Then, as soon as the light disappeared once more, the patterns stopped and a small click resounded from the box. Demeter looked at Igniseria, who shrugged in response. Demeter flipped the latch on the box and opened it. He pulled out a necklace made out of granite. On it, there were three ovular shaped plaques made out of green marble. On those, words were engraved.

"What do they say?", Igniseria asked wonderingly. Demeter showed her and she gasped. She was enveloped in light for only a second. When the light faded, she was a Latino woman with long brown hair, yellow eyes, and nails painted fire. Her hair had flames licking off the tips. "May I?"

"Here." Demeter gave Igniseria the necklace.

"Oh My God...", Igniseria gasped.

"What? What is so important?"

"The plaques read names." Igniseria pointed to the very left plaque. The Dreamer, it read. Below it, "Light". The second plaque: The Patience and below that, "Peace". And the third plaque: The Leader and below that, "Will".

"What are those the names of?", Demeter asked, wonder drawn in the lines of his face.

"The Chosen Ones."

"Wait...Chosen Ones?"

"Yes. Three beings imbued with unimaginable power and grace. They are chosen by their respective Personality, as they are referred to. Once they discover their power, it haunts them. But it keeps them from harm, most of the time. Who gave you this necklace?"

"The same one who sucked Mentsomnios through dimensions."

"How do you know?", Igniseria asked incredulously.

Demeter pulled out a note and gave it to Igniseria. It read as such: "Hello Demeter. I hope you are having fun piecing together the puzzle I laid out for you. Things are going to get much trickier, so I decided to send you a..."gift", should you think of it as that. Wait for sunset tonight and sit facing the crossed cliffs. The clock is ticking, so find your way through this puzzle quickly. The best of luck, and Have many a good night! Signed, S."

"S?", Igniseria asked, half scoffing, half confused.

"I don't don't know either. But one thing is for certain."

"And what would that be?"

"If we don't figure out this S's puzzle within two days, we are all going to die. Painfully."

* * *

Night had fallen. The shadows danced and moved, almost as if alive. A demonic chant floated over the land, capturing Igniseria's attention. She focused her gaze on a huge group of gathered infantry. She tuned her ears to the chant:

**Fusce prodeunt Dominus in medio nostri proditor invenimus! **

**Combustio animam suam ignis vestri, **

**et dampnes corpus suum ad putrescet! **

**Guine eius quasi benedictionem, **

**sacrificium et comedat cor!**

Her mind translated and she shivered as the lyrics sunk in. They were going to sacrifice someone. A traitor in particular. She watched as the gathered infantry separated to let something through. Igniseria gasped when she was what that something was. It appeared horse like, but it wasn't. It was robotic. Yellow eyes blazed in metal eye sockets, and the rear legs revealed wires and metal tubing. The thing walked forward and sat on its haunches. A tall man walked out of the crowd, black cloak flapping behind him. He pulled out a rapier and put it to the thing's throat. The man bent down to ear level with the thing. Igniseria struggled to hear what the man said, but the three words she heard set her off. She heard: Igniseria...Escape...Heal. Then, the man slit the throat of the thing and threw the rapier to the ground. It glowed sickly red in the night, and a piercing whistle sounded, heard only to the infantry. Then fire exploded out of the rapier and covered the ground near by.

"It is Shokain! He has betrayed us!", cried one infantry soldier.

"He has caused us hell! Dark Lord, damn him! Damn him to his grave and beyond!", screamed another. But Igniseria didn't hear these things. She had bent time, picked up the thing, and was gone in her adrenaline before the first shriek of pain escaped the things mouth.

* * *

_Night heard a shriek in his dream. It sounded male, and brought on a pang of sorrow. It rolled down the infinite slope Night was perched on. The cliff on which he stood was bare; no plant life was to be seen. He looked down, and saw something, someone, waving to him. But not a friendly wave. An "I am here!" kind of wave. Night felt that he must reach this someone, but the drop seemed to be paradoxically infinite. Was it day? No. Yes! He couldn't tell. There was too much fog. If only he could see! Then he felt more than heard the CRACK! that went through the cliff. He had no time to react before the ground fell out from under him. Then, he was falling. Falling and Falling, forever and ever. He heard two voices as he fell. _

_"FATHER!", screamed the first. It sound feminine._

_Just before he hit the ground, (when he reached it, he didn't know), he heard the second voice._

_"The end of the beginning is the beginning of the end.", it said calmly. It sounded almost like Twilight. Then, Night hit the ground, and everything went dark._

* * *

Night woke up in a panic. His body was tensed, as if to spring. He relaxed himself and got up. Fluttershy stirred and awoke. She blinked a few times, trying to adjust her vision.

"Where are you going?", she asked sleepily.

"I need to take a walk.", Night responded.

"Bad dream?"

Night nodded and kissed Fluttershy on the head. She smiled and closed her eyes. Night walked to the edge of the hill upon which he and his love slept. He sat looking at the stars and the sky. That is when he started hearing the voices. They were quiet at first, barely noticeable. But then they started getting louder.

_Am I going insane? _Night thought. He looked at Crux, which was the only constellation he recognized in this universe. Then, as if on command, the voices rose to shouts. Night screamed and fell to the ground. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Fluttershy jolt awake. He tried to cover his ears, but to no avail. The voices got louder and louder.

"Ipse surrexit.", one stated.

"The fall of civilization has begun.", said another.

"Vive, morere et Dormi!", shouted another.

Night let out another involuntary scream. At this point, Fluttershy was at his side. She was saying something, but Night couldn't hear. The voices were too loud. Then they were gone, replaced by a unified voice.

"At the end of it all, lies the beaten path. You will join in the fall, and suffer his wrath. You will wait for the call, of which the Loved hath.", sung the voice. Then, it was over. The voices were gone completely. Night took Fluttershy into his front legs. There he sat, Fluttershy in his embrace for what felt like the longest time in his life. When she pulled away, she was crying.

"L-love. W-Wh-What h-happened? You were-were talking in Lat-in to yours-elf-f.", she cried, stuttering.

"I don't know. I heard voices. They were talking to me, telling me things.", Night said calmly. In all truth, the calmness was a fraud. But, he did not want to panic Fluttershy any more than she already was.

"No...not you too...", Fluttershy cried. She looked just about ready to give up on this hellish life. "_Maybe for the better.",_ Night thought.

"I realized that Twilight was pulled away from everyone else by her Dreams. But this is only one of a few I have had. I am not going to become like her.", Night replied matter of factually. "_Am I saying lies?", _He thought. _  
_

"O-Okay...", Fluttershy said, trailing off. She got up and walked back to their bed of grass. She collapsed and sat staring at the stars.

"I will be right there love.", Night said. Fluttershy, still looking at the stars, nodded. Night looked at the stars himself.

_"_God,_ if there is any hope of me saving anyone, send me a sign. Anything to let me know that this whole commotion isn't already a pre-decided failure." _The Night side of Alex thought there was no hope. Alex on the other hand knew better. Two things happened to confirm Alex's intuition. First, a pink rose petal floated onto his nose out of no where. On it, made of natural whites and pinks, was a picture of a Doorway, seemingly leading to paradise. The second thing was that Crux glowed brighter, if not just briefly. Night/Alex smiled. _"God, you are a tricky one...", _he thought. Then he returned to his love.

"Night...?", she asked as he lay down next to her.

"Yes?"

"I...am ready."

For a second, no more, Night was confused. Ready? And then, he knew. She was ready for him. For a family.

"Then let your wish be granted sai."

Both started at the use of this ancient and rare word. But, that was not the focus. Fluttershy kissed Night and pulled back, eyes shining. That night, they took the plunge.

* * *

**In the morning...**

* * *

The recent sacrificial gathering had dispersed, but now something else had the infantry astir. They panicked at first and then clustered around something. They parted to let that something through. Some saw the light skin. Others saw the dark hair. And a few with a better vantage point saw the icy sand eyes. No matter what one saw though, they all knew what it was. And they feared it more than Death itself. Even the mighty Ki Klon stepped aside to let it by. It reached the wall of the town, and chuckled under its breath.

"Home sweet home.", it said half happily, half sarcastically. It sounded male and malevolent. He was the Wanderer, and he had returned from his journey.

* * *

Moon Dust had awoken early that morning. She liked the feel of the cold on her body. She stretched out her wings to full length, sighing in bliss as a violent shiver seized her body. She closed her wings immediately after that, and looked around warily. You see, the cold put her into a trance like state. She was calm, sweet, and happy during these trances. She was also controllable. Her previous mentor had abused this. She had put Moon Dust into a trance, and then wreaked destruction upon the city of someone whom she had a grudge on. No one lived, even the innocent people. And Moon Dust was not ready for that to happen again.

At that point she had reached the wall of the town and saw light pouring from a small section of it. Moon Dust got no closer than 25 yards when the wall where the light shone started to disappear. Fade away, as if it never existed. Through stepped a pony. He was light tan with dark brown tail and mane. And strapping sand colored eyes. He turned around and cursed at the wall. He murmured something and the wall began rebuilding it self. Moon Dust only watched, awestruck. That is when the pony noticed her sitting, mouth agape, staring at him. He smiled and winked, then walked off to some place. Moon Dust swooned the moment he was out of view. Demeter had warned of things with an infatuating effect about them. He had even trained her to resist. But nothing could have prepared her for HIM. He was entirely different.

He was the Wanderer.

* * *

"Night, you are going to have to explain it to us again. But slow down. You are going way too quickly.", Pinkie said softly, chuckling in between at a loon face Twilight made at Night's turned back.

"Pinkie is right.", Twilight said. She made another face that earned her another fit of laughter from Pinkie and a confused scowl from Night.

"Fine...", Night said, sighing in annoyance. He once more told Pinkie and Twilight of his dream the previous night and the voices which followed. He hit as much detail as he could remember, for the dream was now almost lost. Pinkie and Twilight exchanged a worried glance at the mention of a little girls voice. Night either didn't notice the look or didn't care. When he was finished, Pinkie looked thoughtfully into the air and Twilight zoned out, both trying to pick out key bits of the dream. That was when Night heard the hoof steps. He turned around to say something, but instantly fell. He choked on his own blood as it rushed out of a slit in his throat that had just been sliced. As his vision faded to black, he saw one thing. Burning and Angry sand colored eyes.

* * *

**Sorry for the ridiculously long wait! I had a LOT going on at home. Going to stop this for a while and work on my other stories. Don**'**t worry, I won't ditch this story for long! It has become my child. I hope you all enjoyed Chapter 4 of No Way Out! **

**PS: If you did not read Chapter 0-1: The Beginning of It All, now is your chance to do so. It will go into a little more detail about the Wanderer.**

**Keep reading fellow Fictioners!**


	7. Chapter 0-2: A Story of Another Day

**PART TWO! This is going to be mostly Desert's story, so expect very little action outside his past. Hope you enjoy! There are three parts to his story. This is Act 1.**

**Also, if you are wondering why this is after Chapter 4 of No Way Out and not after Chapter 0-1, it is because these chapters are like flashbacks. Think the dreams of the surviving ponies involved in these chapters merging into a memory. The memory is what you are seeing.**

* * *

It had been a few days since the night of the Mentalasee burning. Desert and Pinkie walked through the town, side by side. At first they had tried to keep their love a secret, but obviously the "little birdies" had a different plan. So now they did not care. They were planning on going to a place that Desert called Steadfast. He called it that for the reason that it was a hidden area blocked by thick trees. That is when Twilight walked up.

"Hello Desert!", she said excitedly.

"Hello sai Twilight." (Sai basically means sir or madam, which ever applies.), Desert responded cheerfully enough.

"Hi Twi'!", Pinkie said, seeming to be containing some hidden excitement.

"I wanted to ask you a question...", Twilight said cautiously.

"Go on.", Desert responded nonchalantly. Twilight blushed, embarrassed.

"I was wondering if I could hear your story."

Pinkie looked at Twilight as if Twilight had read her mind. Which she basically had.

"I guess it is about time to tell you. There are two others who need to hear."

"Who?", Pinkie asked.

"Big Mac and Red Velvet."

Twilight jolted and began to visibly shiver.

"I understand Big Mac, but wh-why h-her?", she asked nervously.

"I set her free from Rose's grasp. She deserves to hear my story."

"O-Okay. I will f-find them...", Twilight volunteered. Desert looked worriedly at the shaking Twilight, but before he could say anything, she was gone, running seemingly nowhere in particular.

"Onward to Steadfast?", Desert asked anxiously.

"Yes.", Pinkie replied, smiling.

* * *

Pinkie sat in the center of Steadfast, making patterns with sticks. Desert watched and seemed to take mental notes at the patterns that so quickly formed and disappeared as Pinkie's blurring hooves worked. Twilight walked out of the trees behind him, Big Mac and Red Velvet in tow. Red Velvet was throwing nasty looks at Twilight before she saw her savior. And Pinkie.

"What is she doing here!?", she asked angrily. Pinkie stopped mid-pattern and looked confusedly at Red Velvet. Desert didn't do so much as flinch. "Twilight, I know we were never on good terms, but to kill us all? That seems over board."

"Shut up you over-obnoxious twit.", Twilight murmured. Red Velvet luckily didn't hear this insult.

"I have brought you all here to tell you my story.", Desert said, still facing Pinkie. "There shall be no blood shed on this day and night, as my story will likely have you in entranced..."

Red Velvet sighed in disgust. "I have to spend all of this time with her?" She pointed at Twilight. "Might as well have let me die, Desert."

This time, Desert did flinch. "How did you...?"

"Know your name?", Red Velvet asked. "Don't ask." Still Big Mac remained silent.

"Evil and Black Magic is what I think...", Twilight said with contempt.

"Twilight, best not do that...", Big Mac finally said, as quiet as it was.

"Enough! Gather round, for we will be here well into the night if this stupid bickering continues.", Desert said with annoyance apparent in his voice.

With reluctance, Red and Twilight sat down near to each other in front of Desert, still shooting hateful glances at each other. Big Mac seated himself a little further, while Pinkie got nice and close. In fact, she was right against Desert, nuzzling his neck.

"The story upon which is going to unfold is full of wonder, mystery, and death. You must accept that all of these events are passed, and nothing can be done to change what has already happened."

"Why...?", Twilight begun. But then, the entire group collapsed, deep inside Desert's past.

* * *

Twilight awoke on a patch of grass not unlike the one she had collapsed on. Except, instead of seeing her friends (and enemy), she saw a curious colt looking at her. He was all gray, with a patch of black on his forehead. His pelt looked like grains of all hues of gray dust. He was a pegasus, and his wings matched his skin color, blending in so well Twilight was lucky to have seen them in the first place. His eyes were a dark (almost black) blue. He backed up a little bit when Twilight opened her eyes.

"S-Sai?", asked the colt.

"Yes?", Twilight responded. She got up, causing the colt to back up a little farther.

"Are you okay?"

"I think so. My head hurts a little though."

"I can help with that. And, I am not surprised. You fell onto your head when I walked up to you.", said the colt. He bowed quickly, his wings spreading in a practiced and polite manner. It was obvious that he seemed a tad more sure of himself around Twilight. Whatever had gotten into his head in the first place Twilight had no idea. He picked a rose petal and twined it with a type of long grass. "Eat this sai." Twilight took the plants and ate them. She instantly felt better.

"Thank you. May I ask where I am?"

"You are in Calla Meyos. Have you gotten lost?

"You can say that."

The colt looked confusedly at Twilight for a moment before starting.

"I forgot to introduce myself! I am Black Dust. What is your name sai?"

"I am Twilight Sparkle. Hello Black Dust." Black Dust nodded and bowed in greeting.

"Nice to meet you Twilight Sparkle! Do you need me to lead you to the Calla, or are you on your way to someplace else?"

"Lead me to the Calla please, if you would.", Twilight said sweetly. The colt smiled back.

"Okay sai. Follow me!" The colt set off at a brisk pace, leaving Twilight in confusion. Then Twilight caught on and raced after the colt. That was when she noticed the loose dirt around him slowly rise off the ground as he passed, falling back after he was a small distance away. When he finally stopped, they had reached the edge of a small town. It had many farms, most growing rice as it seemed. She had begun to walk forward when she heard a squeal and whirled around. Black Dust was rough housing with a smaller, younger looking colt. When they stopped, the younger colt walked up to Twilight.

"Hello sai.", he said politely. Twilight noted the light brown skin and dark brown mane and tail. And then she stifled a scream when she saw the eyes. Cold and sand colored. The colt was Desert.

* * *

"You don't look well...", Black Dust put in. Desert looked at her, head cocked, eyes showing worry. She sat staring at him, unable to take her eyes of him. "Guess you found another admirer!", Dust said mockingly. Colt Desert smacked him in the face, hard, but not painfully. Dust seemed used to this and started laughing warm laughter.

"D-Desert?". Twilight asked. Dust stopped laughing and Desert's eyes went dark. Dark and cold and dangerous.

"How do you know my name sai?", he asked coldly. Twilight felt a pit in her stomach.

"I-I don't! I was just...zoning out I guess.", Twilight said emotionlessly. She hoped she had hidden the wavering in her voice well, because she knew how well Desert could detect lying. She wondered if this Desert was as powerful as the one she knew. Probably not.

"Outsiders.", Dust huffed. He shrugged when Twilight looked at him. _Just sayin'_ that look said.

"Though I do not believe you sai, I will let that one go as simple coincidence. I am guessing you want to be led into town, so follow me.", Desert said. He started walking towards a cluster of homes not to far in the distance. She took one final glance around and saw Red Velvet watching her from the inside of a farm home. She mouthed, _Was that who I think it was? _Twilight nodded. Red quivered and disappeared from the window.

"Come on sai!", Dust said happily. He trotted along behind Desert, and Twilight followed. That was when she knew what was going on. Desert was doing this. All of it. And he had made them part of his previous life. _My story will likely have you entranced,_ he had said. Twilight now understood that perfectly.

* * *

Pinkie woke up in what appeared to be some kind of mill. The sound of water churning and splashing confirmed this. A water mill, fully operational and working.

"What the hell?", Rose asked inside Pinkie's mind. For the first time, Pinkie heard Rose's true voice. As Pinkie knew, it was deeper than hers. But it also had a soft and thick Italian accent that trapped Pinkie for a second. She was so surprised at how soothing and tempting the voice was, she let out an involuntary sigh. She quickly recovered from the stupor.

"Don't ask me.", Pinkie retorted. At this, Rose was speechless. Just then, a pegasus stallion not much older than Pinkie walked in. Pinkie couldn't see features for he was in the dark. But she saw his surprise and that look of surprise was enough to get Pinkie to laugh.

"What?", he asked cautiously. Pinkie tried to achieve a straight face, but only made herself laugh harder. Then she shut her self up. She didn't want to leave a bad impression on the stallion. He might have some influence in the town.

"I apologize for my rude outburst. I can't seem to control myself right now.", Pinkie said apologetically.

"It is alright.", replied the stallion. He walked up to Pinkie and helped her up. For some reason, he was still in the dark.

"Where am I?", Pinkie asked.

"You are in Calla Meyos sai.", replied the stallion.

"Thank you. May I ask your name sai?", Pinkie asked.

"My name is Water Call. Nice to meet you.", the stallion said softly. It is then that he stepped into the light. What Pinkie saw made her gasp. He was a dark, handsome black, with white mane and tail. His wings were white at the tips. But the real shocker was his eyes. They...changed. First they were light blue like a river, then they were blue green like the ocean, and so on. The irises also seemed to flow and ripple like water.

"Nice to m-meet you s-sai Wat-er Call...", Pinkie breathed.

"My eyes?"

Pinkie nodded. Water Call started to laugh.

"I remember when the Templars first saw my eyes. The thought I was a demon of sorts. They may be wise, but hell, even an idiot would be able to say I wasn't a demon.", Water Call scoffed. Pinkie once more found her voice.

"Sai?"

"Yes?"

"I need help finding my friends.", Pinkie said in the form of a question.

"Name one. I know many names and many ponies."

"Desert Wind." Water Call was a blur and before Pinkie knew what was going on, she was pinned to the ground.

"Who the hell are you!? Have you come to disrupt this towns peace!? And how in the fuck do you know that name!?", Water asked coldly.

"H-he..." Pinkie found she had lost her voice once more and cried.

"Your an Outsider. That much is obvious. I can read it in your eyes. So how do you the name Desert Wind!?"

"We are in... friends."

"Do not lie to me sai."

"I am not lying. I swear it!"

This caused a paused in Water Call. He seemed to consider, leaving no room for error.

"You have told lies before, but I do not sense deception in your voice..."

"That is because I am not lying!"

Water Call seemed to once more consider.

"If you know Desert Wind as a friend, how did you meet him, Outsider?" He said this last word as if it were a curse.

_What should I say?_, Pinkie thought.

"I met on his Wanderings. We became fast friends.", Pinkie said.

"Wanderings? Sai, are you thinking of the correct name?"

"Yes sai. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Desert isn't but 6 years old." Upon hearing this, (and after a moment of shock), Pinkie fainted.

* * *

Big Mac awoke to the sound of wind in his ears. He tried lifting his head, but found himself extremely weak. He registered the landscape around him as best as he could from that position. He was in a field of sorts, more than likely a plain. A few trees, oaks by the look, dotted the landscape around him. The sky was clear and beautiful. The air was crisp, but still enjoyably warm. A voice was saying something next to him. Shouting. Crying. A filly by the sound of it.

"Ma!", cried the filly. Big Mac heard a dragging sound and had a rock thrusted under his head, propping it up. The filly was looking at him worriedly. She had pretty blue eyes with a silver and white mane and tail. Her skin itself was red like Big Mac's. "Sai? Are you alright!?"

Big Mac tried to say Hurt but it came out like a more like a raspy _hut_.

"Ma!", the filly cried once more.

"I am here little one.", said a soothing voice. It belonged to a orangish mare with a red mane and tail. And extremely dark green eyes. Big Mac was looking directly at his opposite.

"Sai?", the mare asked.

"Y-Yup...", Big Mac managed to get out. Then darkness enveloped him and he lost consciousness.

* * *

Big Mac awoke on a hay bale. He noticed that he was in a run down barn of sorts. The planks were old and worn and weeds grew untamed. He found that his exhaustion was gone and he could get up, so he did exactly that. He stepped outside to find that it was nighttime. He breathed in the cool air and let it out. That was when he noticed the pony beside him. It was the same opposite mare.

"How are you feeling sai?", she asked warmly.

Big Mac nodded. Good.

"You don't talk much do you?"

Big Mac shook his head.

"Okay. But I have a question. Would you mind answering it?"

Big Mac shook his head once more. No.

"Okay. Why in God's name were you lying sick in a field out in the middle of nowhere?"

"A friend.", Big Mac said after some thought.

"A friend did this to you? They are not very good friends then, I guess!"

"Not that way. It is difficult to explain..."

"Then explain it."

Big Mac sighed. The mare smiled, an innocent yet mocking smile.

"My friend drugged me. This is a hallucination.", Big Mac said.

"Oh?" The mare leaned up and kissed him. Big Mac started.

"Wha...?"

"Just proving a point. Though,", said the mare. Her cheeks turned alarmingly red. "I wouldn't mind doing that again."

"Not needed..."

"Okay sai." There was some silence after this.

"I don't think I ever introduced myself. My name is Blood Dawn. What is your name?"

"Big Macintosh, but you can just call me Big Mac."

"Nice to meet you sai Big Mac!"

"Same to you. But now I have question."

Blood Dawn looked at him.

"If this is not a halluncination, then where am I?"

"You are in Calla Meyos, town of prosperity and peace! Your "friend" must have dragged you here."

Big Mac did not reply. Instead, he looked into the distance, admiring the beautifully dark night. He did not know how important this little barn was. He didn't know he would lose everything here. It was probably better that he didn't know.

* * *

Twilight arrived in town at the same time that Big Mac was waking up from his exhausted coma. At this point, Day had given way to Night. She was relying on Desert and Dust to lead her, for the dark had all but swallowed up the houses from view.

"Now I need a place to stay...", she muttered. Dust's sharp ears picked up on this. He visibly blushed.

"You can stay in my home sai.", he said. Desert turned around and smiled in a mocking way. Dust clubbed him hard enough to send Desert sprawling to the ground. Desert was still grinning even after he got up.

"Thank you Dust. How very kind of you!", Twiligh said sweetly. Dust looked down blushing, trying not to look at the mare.

After a quick goodbye between the two friends, Dust lead Twilight her to his home. Literally his home. He explained that his parents had kicked him out of his home, claiming he was too mature to live with them anymore. He opened the door for her and asked her if she was hungry. Twilight saw the maturity his parents had saw.

"I am not hungry, but I am thirsty as all hell. Would you mind getting me some water?", Twilight asked politely. Dust dipped his head.

"Of course not sai. You are my guest!" Dust went outside for a few minutes. He returned with a beautifully carved cup that had crystal clear water in it. He handed it to Twilight.

"Thank you.", Twilight said gladly. She drank it thirstily and got up to go outside. Dust barred her way. "Wha...?"

"I will be sleeping outside. You may have my bed.", he said matter of factly. Twilight was going to argue, but then saw Dust's eyes. They were cold like Desert's had gone earlier. He was not going to take no for answer. Twilight nodded and headed to Dust's room. The bed was large enough for her to sleep in comfortably. She was asleep almost the moment she hit the bed. She didn't notice Dust walk in and watch with the kind of look a father watches his daughter. He didn't know why, but something in his mind told him that he had to protect the pretty mare. Twilight would not awake until a shriek of grief found its way into her ears the next morning.

* * *

Pinkie awoke not long after Twilight had closed her in eyes in rest. She found herself in a small room lit by a dim candle. Water Call materialized out of the shadows. Pinkie sat up to greet the stallion. The dim light and the haunted, soft look on Water Call's face made him look more handsome than when Pinkie first saw him.

"Good morning sai.", he said quietly.

"Good...morning?"

"You have been asleep for quite some time. The moon has already passed its zenith."

"Oh." Pinkie let out a little huff.

"I want to apologize for earlier. I...overreacted. What I did was rude and uncalled for." Water Call smiled, hope in his eyes. Pinkie saw another thing in those stunning eyes. The stallion was hoping to make up for what he did. Pinkie had an idea, but no sure answer. She loved Desert, but this was the past, so...

"I accept your apology. You were only trying to protect what you hold dear.", Pinkie replied. The stallion's smile grew warm.

"I wouldn't put it exactly that way, but sure." Water Call started to chuckle. It calmed Pinkie's nerves somewhat, and made her feel a bit happy that she had caused happiness instead of angst for the first time in a while. She began to chuckle softly too. Both of their laughs were cut short by whispering. They both realized that it was coming from Pinkie. Water Call backed up a little. Pinkie gained a smoky black aura.

"What are you? What secrets do you hide?", Water Call asked tenuously. Before Pinkie could answer, her body went limp. She crumpled and fell off the bed and to the ground, as a shape formed in front of her. A mirror image of herself, except with red streaks on her body and hair. And disturbingly beautiful dark blue eyes. Rose.

"I see that we have found another victim, shall I say so my dear host?", Rose asked Pinkie. Pinkie could only blink her eyes. Water Call had a moment of almost deadly pausing. What made him pause was the thing's voice. It was laced with an Italian accent that was soft and thick and inviting. His heart basically melted and tried to flow towards the thing. But he snapped out of it, narrowly escaping death. He backed up some more.

"W-What the hell are you?", Water Call asked. His eyes changed to frothy white blue, rippling as if hit by rain drops.

"My name is Rose Red. And you must be Water Call. It will be sad to see you dying on the floor. You have done so much for this damned Calla. Oh well!", Rose cried victoriously. She walked toward Water. Every step turned her skin brighter and brighter, as if on fire. Razor sharp fangs appeared from her mouth. Water backed up into a wall and shrunk down.

"You are the demon in which the Templars so seek to banish! Go to them if you want death! Please, don't kill me! I don't want to lose my calm! You will regret it if I do!", Water Call said. The room grew cold, and the candle went extremely dim. Rose smiled and laughed maniacally.

"You actually think that I would heed your pleas for Life? _Please, don't kill me! I don't want to lose my calm!_ What are you going do to me if you lose your calm?" Rose opened her mouth wider, mocking of a demonic smile. Her body now pulsed, and Pinkie felt as if her head was going to burst.

"This." Water Call's eyes had gone completely white. The room grew colder, and icicles began to form on the ceiling. Ice began creeping up the walls. Pinkie grew numb, but felt some strength return. Rose staggered a little bit.

"No...you can't be. Those are gone. YOU, are gone!", Rose cried.

"There is a reason I protect Desert so much. When I die, he will be the last of my kind." Rose backed up a little more.

"PINKIE!", Water Call shouted. Pinkie, using what little energy she had, sprang to her hooves and launched her self across the room. She landed right next to Water Call as a blast of icy wind blew through the room. The last thing she heard was Rose screaming in terror.

* * *

When Pinkie awoke, only an hour at most had passed. She found her forelegs holding Water Call. Tightly. He was unconscious, but she still blushed and let go. Then she realized something. He had been breathing, but only barely. And his heartbeat had been almost non-existent. Pinkie began to panic.

"W-Water Call?", she asked. Dead silence. Pinkie nudged him. Not even a groan or twitch.

"Water Call!?", she cried. She shook him, starting to cry. His breathing shallower still. Then, a miracle. A quiet growl and a twitch of the eyelid. Pinkie's breath stopped in her throat, hope planting its roots in her head.

"God-damn...", Water Call muttered. Pinkie squealed in delight and threw her forelegs back around him in a hug. Water Call's eyes opened slowly, as if in pain.

"Your alive! Oh thank Celestia!"

"'Course I'm alive sweetheart. I am not passing on that easily."

When Pinkie spoke again, her voice had changed. Not into that murderous Rose Red's though. It was laced with an accent Water Call did not recognize. She looked up at Water Call, tears streaming down her face.

"I apologize for Rose. I can't control her. Damn me to hell. Damn me to the ever-surrounding darkness. I have sinned against thou, and the only way to repent my sins is for thee to send me to purgatory.", said the thing that had possessed Pinkie. Her eyes had changed to a haunting, yet striking dusky silver streaked with black. Water Call had trouble keeping his composure. The thing just kept looking at him with those frightening eyes.

"Who are you sai? Why have you taken this poor sai's body along with that...demon?"

"Me? My name is complex. Call me Phi, it is much easier. As for Rose, she is not a demon. Simply a trapped soul. My origin, I will not go into. May you rest easy, Water Call."

"Wait!" Before Water could say anything else, the silver was replaced by soft blue.

"I am sick and tired of these games!", Pinkie shouted at her self. She walked to the open window.

"Pinkie?"

"Goodbye Water." And with that, Pinkie hurled herself out of the window to a 60 foot drop.

* * *

"PINKIE, NO!", Water Call shouted. He flung himself after her. His eyes turned frothy white, and the ground below collapsed and filled with water. She splashed down into it, and started to sink. Water Call landed right after her, and swam under her. The water began to ripple, and it just dissipated. The ground reformed itself under the two ponies. Pinkie's eyes fluttered open.

"W-Wha...NO! Water Call! You should have let me die!", Pinkie cried.

"I wasn't going to let you die.", Water Call said in a way that was almost a _you knew that_ tone.

"Why did I even try? Even if you hadn't saved me, Rose would have."

"I thought Rose Red was murderous."

"I am her host. She can't live without me. She is a parasite."

"I see. Well, I can't just have you wandering around town. If you, er...Rose, were to do something fatal, say, kill somepony, the panic would spread like wild fire."

"So what do you suggest?"

"You stay in the room we were in. If Rose is gone, or we figure out how to conquer her, you can be free to roam." Pinkie considered this for a little bit. The idea made a lot of sense. Rose was dangerous, and getting more powerful. This idea was safer, and limited the chances of death.

"I like the idea! I can help you at the mill and you can keep an eye on me."

"Exactly." Pinkie could hear the gears grinding in Water's head. Thinking of ways to keep Pinkie occupied. And maybe also wondering about the two beings he just encountered.

"Well, the night is wasting! Let us talk before the hustle and bustle of the day arrives. I know you have some things on your mind."

"Alright. First, who or what is Rose Red?"

"I don't exactly know. I just woke up one morning with the feeling of not being alone. And then she spoke to me, convincing me that she was harmless. She took root in my head and then there was no going back. After that, she began killing ponies. She took control of me and murdered them in the most gruesome ways possible. It was her version of drugs."

Water Call nodded. "Makes a lot of sense that she is a murderer. Last night, she had fangs. Is she...?"

"A vamp? No. Part of where ever she comes from, I think."

"Oh well. But I do have one more question."

"Yes?"

"I was...uh...wondering if you would come with me to watch the Burning Of Petals?" Water Call visibly blushed after this.

"After what you just went through, anything for you.", Pinkie said sweetly. Her eyes shone in the dark of the night. Walking side by side, Water led Pinkie to the crest of a hill, where they watched as a group of ponies below threw petals into a fire, causing bursts of color and light. Pinkie had known from the beginning that it was inevitable that she would fall for the stallion, with his handsome wings and pelt, and his caring, soft nature. For it to happen so soon didn't surprise her in the least.

* * *

**Later That Morning**

* * *

Red Velvet heard a piercing sound burrow itself in her head. She grimaced and sat up in her bed to find a dark black figure in her room. It had pointed ears and the body of thin man. It had razor sharp claws and talons. Its face was that of a jackal. It shrieked and lunged at her. She put her hooves out in front of her to block the incoming creature. When nothing happened, she lowered her hooves. The filly that she lived with, Orange Sunset was her name, was standing in the door way, her eyes burning red. The creature was caught in mid-air, flailing its claws at Red Velvet. It shrieked again, but this time, it was muffled.

"Cover your eyes.", Orange said. Red Velvet obeyed. She heard one final shriek, a resonating crunch, saw a flash of light, then silence. She lowered her hooves again, now gaping at Orange. Red's horn was blazing uncontrollably.

"Y-you...", was all that she managed to get out. Orange looked at her.

"You will not tell Mother. If she were to find out..."

_I would be fed to Hell._, Orange finished in Red Velvet's head. Red Velvet could still only gape.

"What was that thing!?", Red Velvet finally asked breathlessly.

"One of HIS minions."

"HIS?"

"Somepony, maybe even something, has sent dark creatures into town like that one. They have caused minimal trouble, but I fear whoever is doing this is setting bait." Red Velvet saw darkness out of the corner of her eye.

"Orange!", she screamed. Another dark creature jumped out of the shadows of the room, this one with the body of a dog but the head of a snake. Two tendrils of darkness burst out of its side and caught Orange. She struggled to get free, but the tendrils had a tight grip. The thing howled in triumph. _I finally got he_r_! _is what that howl sounded like. The creature then proceeded to fling itself out of the window, howling as it went. Orange's mother, a mare just as beautiful as her daughter, Cactus Bloom was her name, rushed through the door.

"NO! Orange! Get back here you ugly mongrel! I swear to God that I will tear your fucking heart out if I see you again!", Cactus Bloom cried. She ran up to the window, stilling calling Orange's name. When she realized it was too late, she crumpled to the floor, tears pouring out of her eyes. Red Velvet got out of her bed and went to console the crying Cactus Bloom.

"It is alright sai. I will find her, for your sake.", she soothed.

"No, you won't.", Cactus cried. She looked up at Red Velvet. "They took her brother before. He never returned."

* * *

Twilight jolted awake at the sound of a high pitched shriek of grief that found its way into Dust's little home. She jumped out of bed and raced into the main room, where Dust was already waiting.

"You heard that, right?", Twilight asked.

"Of course. It came from the outer edges of town.", Dust replied. Little did Twilight know that being around Dust had begun to evolve her, like Desert did to Pinkie. Whilst Pinkie was faster, had better eyesight, and better senses, Twilight's hearing had begun to sharpen. Because she didn't know this however, she was surprised when they arrived at the house she had seen Red Velvet in and no pony was there.

"Hello? Is everything alright?", Dust called. A beautiful mare burst out of the door to the home. She had long dark brown hair and light greenish-yellow skin. Her eyes were pink, like the flower of a cactus or cherry blossom.

"They took her! They took my baby!", cried the mare.

"Cactus Bloom, you need to tell me who They is!", Dust exclaimed. Just then, Red Velvet appeared behind Cactus Bloom, her horn blazing. One thing about Red Velvet is that her horn blazed whenever she was experiencing a severe emotion. The colors always closely related to the emotion. This time, her horn was blazing red, tinged with gray. Anger hinted with fear.

"They, my young sai, is to say the dark creatures who have tortured this poor mare for quite some time.", Red Velvet said. Sadness and worry laced her voice, along with flat out fury. "Dust, why don't you try to console Cactus Bloom here. I want to talk to Twilight."

Dust opened his mouth to say something, took one look at Red Velvet's dark eyes, and closed it again. He obediently went over to Cactus and started talking to her. Meanwhile, Red walked over to Twilight.

"I guess now is not the time for bickering, huh?", Twilight asked. Then something happened that changed Twilight's life forever. Red Velvet began to cry. Twilight and Red had been enemies for quite some time, and during that time, Twilight concluded that Red felt no emotions except hatred, envy, and contempt. To see this moved her. "R-Red? Is everything...?" Red Velvet cut her off.

"She doesn't remember me!", she sobbed. "I let her get taken away, just like before!"

"Before? What are you talking about Red?", Twilight inquired.

"This..." Red Velvet turned slightly so Twilight could see her Cutie Mark. It was a red velvet colored cape.

"I don't know...", Twilight started. Then she couldn't continue. "No..." With a flash of her horn, Red Velvet made her Mark disappear. She turned to look at Twilight again. Twilight saw the truth in those downcast eyes. The cold, hidden truth.

"Now we are even.", Red Velvet said quietly. Red Velvet had never been born of normal ponies. She was born of Calla Meyos. That is why Red Velvet had hated Twilight so much. She had envied her. Red Velvet envied Twilight because Twilight was something that Red Velvet couldn't become. That something was normal. Twilight felt tears in her own eyes and walked up to the smaller unicorn. For the first of many times in her life, Red Velvet put her head on Twilight's shoulder and began to outwardly cry.

* * *

Big Mac awoke at the sound of a shriek. It was too distant too tell where it came from, so he paid no heed. Instead, he hoisted himself off the hay on which he had been sleeping and walked outside. There he sat until he realized Blood Dawn had walked up beside him.

"Did you hear it?", Blood Dawn asked. Big Mac nodded.

"It woke you up, didn't it?" Again, another nod.

"I have a question." Big Mac looked at Blood Dawn.

"When you woke up, did you or did you not have a bad feeling about today?" Big Mac's eyes darkened, but he remained silent. Blood Dawn saw enough in that look to know he did.

"Somepony is going to die.", he whispered suddenly. Blood Dawn was shocked into silence. She thought it over. The bad feeling, the nightmare, and the fact that the Calla offered only a false peace seemed to fit hoof-in-hoof. But, why? What is it that had gotten into Big Mac's head to make him think someone was going to die? And by his voice, it wasn't death of old age. And when?

"W-Why do you say that? That is quite a far-fetched judgement.", Blood Dawn asked. She tried to keep her voice from quavering, but it ended up worse after what Big Mac said next.

"I know because I saw. In my nightmare. In my Deja-Vu. That somepony is you.", he responded quietly. Blood Dawn's eyes widened.

"Do you say true?" This earned a slow and downcast nod. Blood Dawn looked down at her hooves. "I need to tell Silver Wisp the truth." A questioning look from Big Mac. "The filly who noticed you yesterday. She possibly saved your life." A moment of understanding. Then Blood Dawn walked into the barn silently. Big Mac accompanied her. Silver Wisp looked up from her hay stack as they approached. Before Blood Dawn could say anything, Silver Wisp threw her forelegs around her in a hug. She was crying.

"Ma! Don't go! Please! You can't die today! Don't listen to the mad-pony!", Silver cried.

"S-Silver...", Blood Dawn stuttered.

"Fei-Shaum.", Silver said suddenly. Big Mac's eyes looked questioning while Blood Dawn's grew dark.

"The feeling a close group gets when they know one is going to die.", Silver Wisp explained coldly.

"Close group? We haven't known each other for but a day!", Blood Dawn exclaimed.

"There are more places than just the Calla. You don't know where he came from. He probably is in a fei-klan. We might be nothing more than useful tools in it.", Silver Wisp said. She glared at Big Mac. Her pretty blue eyes went dark, dark grey. Blood Dawn shrieked and jumped back. Big Mac was held in place, seemingly stuck by a wire. The filly jumped down from her hay stack and walked up to Big Mac. He felt darkness creeping into his mind, like a smothering slab of rock. Silver still kept up her glare.

"Silver! Little sis, what are you doing!?", Blood Dawn called out. To Big Mac, she sounded miles away. Silver Wisp's eyes widened and then narrowed to slits. She turned on Blood Dawn. Blood Dawn backed up further.

"What did you just say? What did you call me?", she asked bitterly. That smother grew heavier.

"There is something I have to tell you..." That was the last thing Big Mac heard before everything went dark. Fei-Shaum.

* * *

Throughout the Calla and Ponyville, many ponies felt as if they had been hit by a large stone. The breath was knocked out of them, and some even collapsed to the ground. No pony understood what was going on, save one. That one was Twilight.

"Big Mac...No...", she whispered. Then she began to cry, her tears spilling upon open ground, for she had abandoned Dust to think about the dreadful feeling she was having. Now it all made sense.

* * *

Big Mac shot upward, gasping for breath. The stone had been lifted off his mind, but the terrain was different. He quickly realized that he was back in Steadfast. His eyes were still blurry when he noticed a figure sitting at the far end of the clearing. His eyes cleared enough to make out detail. It was Pinkie. Or rather, a Pinkie look-alike. She had the same body, but with red streaks on it and her hair, which was straight and lustrous. The mare looked at Big Mac, revealing to him shocking navy blue eyes. She flipped her hair to the other side of her neck in a way that would have brought many stallions to their knees. Except for one thing. The eyes filled the mind with regret. _  
_

_They are horrifyingly beautiful..., _Big Mac thought. He started backing away from the mare. She looked confused.

"Why do you back away from me?", she asked. She arose and started walking towards Big Mac. She gave him an innocent and friendly smile. But Big Mac would not fall for her tricks. He had sensed the evil, the darkness she embodied. Still backing up, he began to call upon something he thought of as his "little secret." Both him and the mare felt the air around them grow thick, but neither took note.

"Go...", Big Mac said.

"W-What? Have I done something wrong?"

Big Mac dipped his head, and he felt energy buzzing through his body. The mare seemed to go defensive.

"No! I will not let you kill me!", she screamed. Her eyes lit up, and Big Mac felt as if he might explode. Still, he kept feeding his energy to his little secret. For a second longer, the feeling of outward pressure intensified. Then the mare stopped attacking him. "I have a better idea.", she called.

* * *

Rainbow Dash was flying high in the sky, enjoying the cold of the afternoon. She passed over Steadfast, looking down to see if Pinkie and Desert Wind were there. She saw shapes, but could not make them out. So, she flew in closer. Indeed, Pinkie and Desert were there, but with Twilight and the shy Red Velvet there too. And...Big Mac. And who was the other pony. The name came to her as quick as a flash.

"Rose...Rose!", Dash said. Rose walked over to Desert and put a hoof on him. A visible line of energy attached her and Big Mac. Dash began to dive, hoping to stop Rose before she did anything stupid. She gained amazing speed, not realizing her aim was slightly off.

"ROSE!", she called. Rose looked up, and her sardonic grin melted into horror.

"Dash!? NO!", she cried. Then, a blast went off in front of Big Mac, and Rainbow Dash was not quick enough to stop. She flew right into the explosion, and everything went black.

* * *

Big Mac awoke back in the Calla. At least, that is where he thought he was. He lay on top of a hill in a bed of soft and beautiful flowers, most of them shades of blue, red, or yellow. He attempted to get up, failed, tried again, and successfully pulled himself up, standing among the bed of flowers. He grew mesmerized, for it was now night in the Calla. He was still mesmerized by the stars when he heard a small gasp behind him. He turned to see Silver Wisp and Blood Dawn frozen half way up the hill. Both ponies' eyes were O's of fright. Then, some mysterious rush took over Blood, and she raced up the hill. When she got to the top, she gave Big Mac a long kiss. Silver Wisp followed slowly, shock still apparent in her eyes. Blood Dawn put her head on Big Mac's shoulder.

"We-We tho-thought yo-ou were d-de-ad!", she cried. Big Mac, confused as to what to do, nuzzled Dawn's neck. She seemed to relax a little after this, but still her body was tense as a compressed coil.

"I thought I had killed you. I morally regret doing anything to you in the first place.", Silver said. Her pretty blue eyes were back, and she once more looked and sounded like a filly.

"Nope...", Big Mac said quietly. He slowly brought down Dawn, and laid next to her. She leaned on him, tears still streaming down her haunted face. Silver Wisp laid down on the other side of Big Mac, pressing up against him for warmth. Now, Big Mac had always heard the saying "And they lived happily ever after!" This usually applied to a troubled family who got a second chance, or a chance meeting between two opposite characters. While this story would most likely not have a happy ending, this was Big Mac's family. He had to accept that. And he did, quite willingly in fact. He loved Dawn for who she was, his opposite, and the closest he ever had to a friend like him. And he loved Silver as he loved his little sister Applebloom. He was going to care for them. He was going to watch them. He wanted this story to have a happy ending. Thinking about how he was now responsible for his friend and his "little sister," he didn't want to leave the Calla. Not now, not ever. He wanted to stay with Dawn and Silver. He wanted everyone to be together. He wanted to be family. He wanted this story to have a happy ending. But how wishes could pile in one hoof while shit piled in the other.

* * *

When Raibow Dash awoke, she almost screamed. Maybe it was the fact that she thought she was dead. Maybe it was the transfer from daylight to midnight. What ever it was, she woke up panicked. She raised her head and looked around.

"Am I dead?", she thought aloud. Wherever she was, it was beautiful. To her left were giant mountains, stretching into the darkness like dark sentinels. All around her were gently rolling hills. To her right was a village. Wait, a village? That wasn't right. Dash thought it over. The center of the village was lit with many dancing colors. On the outskirts of the village, farms of some kind stood. In front of her, not too far in the distance, stood a water mill. Dash could tell it was a water mill because of the sound of running water by her. A light was on in one of the windows. That was when Dash felt Pinkie. She sensed her presence but not Rose's. But that could only mean one thing.

"Damn...", Dash muttered. She stood up shakily and then took off towards the mill.

And then the shadows followed.

* * *

Pinkie was resting on a bed in the mill. The day had been exhausting. It had been hot, and they had needed to fix the mill. Tough work that was. She had tried to convince Water Call to rest, but to no avail. He had been restless since the encounter with Rose. Pinkie was beginning to slip into a hazy sleep when she heard a buzzing. She sat up and looked out the window, where the sound seemed to be originating from. Water Call walked over to the window and looked out. When he pulled his head back in, his eyes were wide and frightened.

"What is it Water?", Pinkie asked.

"I don't know. And that's the problem. If I don't know what it is, then we should be careful. No pony except Desert, White Sentinel (the leader of the Calla), and Lonely Cloud, know about this place.", Water responded. Pinkie nodded and fell still. The buzzing grew louder and louder until Pinkie could hear distinct wing beats. Then the noise stopped. The air became tense for a second, and then there was a knock on the mill's door. Pinkie and Water looked at each other and then Pinkie got out of her bed. She trotted down the steps to the main room. She stalked up to the door and looked back. Water Call was right behind her, ready to defend her if anything happened. Pinkie opened the door and light blue met magenta. Pinkie gasped.

"R-Rainb-o-ow D-Dash-sh?", she asked, her voice quavering.

"Hello Pinkie.", said a light, feminine voice. Water Call couldn't see who Pinkie was talking to, but didn't try. Obviously Pinkie could handle this.

"What are you doing here!?", Pinkie asked.

"I will have to tell you later.", Rainbow Dash responded. Water Call was put on edge after what Pinkie said. Had he not heard the thick Italian accent of Rose creeping into her voice. And did he not see slivers of dark blue snaking into the light blue of Pinkie's eyes?

"Are-Are you okay? Please tell me you are okay!", Rose asked. It was definitely her. There was that accent and the deeper voice. And then the dark blue. Did this Rainbow Dash not know about Rose? Water Call prepared to act if Rose tried anything.

"I am fine Rose. Don't worry about me.", Dash said soothingly. Just then, Rose shrieked. Her eyes glowed and Dash was picked up and thrown into the room. She connected with a wall and fell to the ground unconscious. As Rose was closing the door, Water saw why she had shrieked. The shadows outside were forming into dark creatures with red eyes. And they were advancing on the mill. Quickly. Then the door slammed shut. The things would not be able to get inside. Water Call had had a Templar, Lonely Cloud was his name, to cast a spell on the mill to protect it from disaster. And this was definitely disaster. Water Call turned to look at Rose and Dash. Rose was leaning over Rainbow Dash, calling her name. Rainbow Dash was a pegasus like Water Call. She was about the size of Pinkie and colored light blue. Her mane and tail were multicolored, hence the name. Blood ran out of her nose and mouth, and off the side of her head.

"Dash?...Dash!?", Rose cried. Rainbow Dash grunted and her eyes fluttered open. Rose smiled and helped her into a sitting up position.

"I'm fine...don't worry about me.", Dash said innocently.

"You're bleeding!", Rose cried. She put a hoof on Dash. The hoof lit up, and the wounds healed up and stopped bleeding.

"Thanks Rose...", Dash huffed. Then Rose surprised Water Call by doing something he would never imagine her doing. She leaned down and put her forehead on Dash's. A blush visibly formed on both mares. Then, surprising Water even more, she pulled her head back and kissed Dash on the forehead. Dash's blush grew intense. And then in a move that only Rose would pull, Rose shoved Pinkie back in control while her lips were still planted on Dash's forehead. Pinkie started and jumped back.

"D-Dash! Um...um...", Pinkie stuttered. Dash looked up, still blushing and smiling.

"Don't worry Pinkie. Its only Rose.", she said matter-of-factually. Then she sighed and closed her eyes. Pinkie gawked at her, then looked at Water. Still too surprised to think logically, he only shrugged. She walked past him and up the stairs to the bedroom. Water Call followed shortly behind. They both went to sleep restlessly that night.

* * *

Pinkie awoke at a little past midnight. She was shivering, but not because of the cold. It was because she dreamed of another nightmare. She thought they were over, for they had mercifully stopped when she met Desert. But they were back, and with a bang. She sat up in her bed, considering what to do. Then, her mind settled the predicament for her. In a half-sleep, half-trance, she plodded over to Water Call's bed. He was "sleeping," feigning sleep to watch Pinkie. When she climbed in the bed with him, he opened his eyes in surprise. Then, Pinkie pushed against him, longing for comfort. He smiled and put a wing around her. And so began their romance, a long and faithful love.

* * *

Big Mac awoke at the sound of something moving through the grass near him. Blood Dawn and Silver Wisp were still fast asleep, and they didn't stir. Big Mac looked around, saw nothing, felt around, felt lots of things. Alarm bells started going off in his head, but he quieted them. No need to panic. He awoke Blood and Silver, who listened sleepily as Big Mac concisely explained what was going on. In the short minute he whispered, they went from groggy to fully alert. Just then, a dark shape rounded the top of the hill. It stopped when it saw them. It was all black, with glaring red eyes. It looked like a pony, except it had the head and tail of a mountain lion.

"Behind me...", Big Mac ordered. Blood and Silver obeyed, getting low and backing up slightly. Big Mac began to call upon his "little secret." Then, the thing let out a sound that was half alarm wail, half war cry. More shadow things began to form, all of them seemingly two animals smashed together. Big Mac had drained almost all of his energy into his "secret," but needed more time. A rock flew out of nowhere and smacked a shadow thing in the head. The rock was good sized, and sent the thing stumbling a little bit. Its comrades looked at it almost incredulously. Big Mac looked down to see Silver beaming at him. He quickly realized she had read his mind. And not only that, had given him the time he needed.

"Thanks.", he whispered. Then he let his "little secret" loose. All at once, auras appeared around every animal, every organism in the area. Thoughts assaulted Big Mac's mind, most from the now either confused or terrified shadow things. He could read and change every living's thoughts, emotions, goals, etc. He targeted the largest of the creatures. He stunned it so it would not fight back. Then, using the giant thing's brain as a transmitter, he persuaded all of the things to turn on each other. It worked beautifully, and within seconds, multiple shadows merged into one seething, moving, screeching shadow. Big Mac threw himself in front of Blood and Silver just before the shadow exploded, restoring the shadows to their rightful places. When Big Mac looked up, Blood was looking at him with shock. Her aura pulsed and spiked, telling Big Mac she was afraid. Silver, on the other hand, was ominously calm.

"You...you...", Blood Dawn started. Though she didn't finish, her face was enough. _You lied to me!_, that face said.

"You saved us.", Silver finished for her sister. Blood looked gratefully at Silver. Then she looked again at Big Mac. She leaned forward, kissed him, and leaned back blushing and smiling.

"You saved us.", Blood agreed. She forgot about what she had just seen. She knew that if her new "family member", hadn't done what he did, they would have all died. Everything was silent, and soon, all three ponies were back asleep. Blood went to sleep thinking about Big Mac.

_I want to call him a brother. He definitely would accept that. I see the look on his face when he is around us. It is protective, like we were family. But, do I consider him a brother? It seems that everyday, my heart yearns more for him. It seems so wrong, knowing he is older than me and I barely know him. But, it feels so right in my heart. The question is, do I trust him? And if so, do I trust him with my love? _

Those were Blood's last thoughts before sleep consumed her.

* * *

Twilight tossed and turned in her sleep. She had bad dreams, and had a very uneasy feeling deep in her head. When sleep finally abandoned her, she opened her eyes and sat up. Dust was standing in the doorway, his eyes wide and his body shaking. Twilight's motherly instinct kicked in, full throttle.

"Dust?", she asked tentatively.

"Y-Yes sai?", he asked. His voice quavered and his eyes kept darting to the darker areas of the moonlit room. He wore an unlit torch-looking contraption around his neck.

"Come here.", Twilight ordered, though ever so softly. Dust obeyed and walked up to the bed and jumped on. Twilight pulled the little colt close to her. "What's wrong Dust? What troubles you so?"

"I-I don't know...I feel like I am being watched. And not by things that want to take care of me...", Dust replied. Twilight also felt this, but she tried to ignore it.

"Everything is going to be fine. Don't worry.", Twilight soothed. At that moment, a black shape burst out of a shadowy wall. It had red eyes, the body of a serpent, and the pointed head of a bird. It coiled on the ground and stared at the two ponies on the bed. Twilight felt unnerved by the thing, but kept her composure for Dust.

"Them...", Dust whispered. He pressed against Twilight, seeking for the comfort that Twilight thought only a mother could offer. The thing raised its head until it was level with Twilight's. Then, it let out a whistling shriek. More things began jumping out of the shadows of the room. Panicking, Twilight used her magic to light the contraption around Dust's neck and float it out in front of them. The things seemed to shrink away for a second at the bright light, but quickly recovered.

"What are you?", Twilight asked them. She got nothing in response, only the sound of more things coming in. The room seemed to expand as more and more came in, allowing them to fit comfortably. Soon, there were close to 100 of them in the room. Twilight began to worry. Then, something shoved her out of control. She watched as a being, who was shrouded in light, took her place. Twilight's body began to glow and her eyes began to shine like lights. Dust looked on with awe. Twilight opened her mouth, and light began to flood the room. A ball of light formed in front of her head, and starting expanding. When it was about six inches from one end to the other, it exploded. The things, already in a panic, were decimated by the pulse of light. After the last of the light died from Twilight's body, she passed out.

* * *

Pinkie awoke once more when a flash of light burned through her eyelids. Her memory at once drifted back to the night where she and Desert found Twilight and Big Mac collapsed on the ground. She instantly knew the flash of light she just saw was the same as the one she saw on that previous night. Water, his wing still around her, though she had shifted and move a little bit, lifted his head up.

"What was that?", he asked. He did not sound at all tired. In fact, he sounded aggressive.

"I don't know.", Pinkie replied. This would be the only time she ever lied to Water.

"What ever it was, it wasn't normal...", Water growled. His wing pulled Pinkie in closer.

"I'm sure it's nothing, dear.", Pinkie said. The _dear _at the end of the sentence surprised her, but she smiled after getting it out.

"Oh it's something. Whatever it was for, it was for good intent.", Water said. His wing tightened further, in a way that couldn't be anything but protective. "And if it was for good intent, that means evil is lurking about..." Pinkie caught on to what Water was saying and almost gasped. She turned her body so she could face him.

"And if evil is lurking about, we aren't the only ones who got attacked by those things.", Pinkie replied. Water slowly nodded. "But my friends..."

"If it is what God planned, then they shall live."

Pinkie chuckled. "You really need to tell me about this God. Who is he or she?" Water also lightly chuckled.

"Later, dear one. Later."

Pinkie, having gathered as much courage as she could muster, leaned her head forward and kissed Water's chin. Being pressed up against him, she felt as he jolted with surprise. With the moon with the sardonic grin setting, _The Piper's Moon_ Water called it, Pinkie and Water fell asleep. Their dreams were of each other.

* * *

Red Velvet awoke when she felt nauseous. When she opened her eyes, the first thing she realized was that she was floating. The world around her seemed to wobble and twist and move. Red began to float towards the open window in her room.

"What the hell?", she asked no pony in particular. She floated through the window and was treated to a surprising sight. The Calla was on fire. Red Velvet was set down on the ground, and she felt as if she were forced to walk towards the Calla. The force was like a current, one she couldn't fight, so she let it carry her towards the Calla. That was when she realized she was in a dream. How did she know? Sound seemed non-existent. The fire blazed, and a nearby fountain still steadily pumped out water. Yet, Red heard no crackling of a fire and no splash of water on water. That is when she saw the pony. The pony was a dark chocolate brown; its mane and tail were a mix of dark and light tan. When the pony opened its eyes, two ocean-blue orbs of water were revealed. Red felt her breath catch in her throat, and she felt as if she were drowning.

"Hile Red Velvet!", saluted the pony. It was feminine by the sound of her voice. And weirdly so, her voice sounded unnervingly like Red's. Red shakily returned the Hile.

"Who are you?", Red asked.

"No matter that. I have important things to tell you. Very...important things."

"Like what? What could possibly require a dream to tell me? And how do I trust you?"

"Just listen."

"Why?"

"Shut up with the fucking questions! Can you give me an answer instead of a stupid-ass question!?"

"Fine. You want an answer? Here. Tell me what you need to, then go fuck yourself."

"...Better...at least for now. But you will find that fucking myself won't help anything. There are bigger problems than that." Red Velvet almost burst out laughing. The mare, whoever she was, was so much like her. The same don't mess with me attitude and all!

"I am all ears."

"Alright. First, you must know that there is an ancient evil threatening everything that you know."

"Well, no shit. Those stupid Darklings are messing with everything. I sure as hell felt when they attacked Pinkie and Twilight. And don't even get me started on what Big Mac's retaliation did to me. I will tell you one thing. It wasn't a pleasurable or good feeling at all. By the way, where did they come from? I don't remember them from back when I lived in the Calla."

"The Darklings are nothing compared to this Evil. This Evil is more powerful. It is more deadly and more sinister. This Evil will corrupt from the bottom-up. As to where the Darklings came from, I only know as much as you do."

"But how? Everything is fine in Ponyville. I am living proof, and so are the others."

"Things can change."

"Desert made sure that nothing can change."

"You know about Pinkie and Water Call, correct?"

"Of course! Don't ask how, but I do!"

"Is that not change?"

"Things like that were bound to happen! Desert knew that!"

"Then explain them falling in love." Red, having no response for this, instead blanched. Pinkie had fallen in love? With one of the Calla ponies? But...but that wasn't possible! Was it...?

"What do we do?", Red asked tentatively.

"You and Twilight must stop the Evil from arising. Things will continue to change. That is a fact. And as more things change, that Evil gets closer and closer to reality."

"How do we stop it?"

"By using your other enemy.", said a feminine voice. Surprising both Red and the mare, Rainbow Dash walked around a building. Her usually bright magenta eyes were dark. They were dark with knowledge. As she spoke, the dream, starting with the sky, began to break apart.

"My what?", Red asked angrily. She used this time to breath, for the mare had looked towards the newcomer and Red had "surfaced" from the eyes of watery abyss.

"Your other enemy. Time. Time can stop the Evil. But only if you use it properly.", Dash responded.

"How did you get here?", the mare asked.

"Accident. I tend to slip into other pony's dreams. I don't know how or why. But, I believe I must be going. I hear somepony calling my name.", said Dash. Then she turned into a wisp and flew out into the darkness that was the outside of the dream. The break-down had advanced alarmingly, and the mare walked up to Red to escape it. They were muzzle to muzzle within a few seconds.

"One other thing before I go.", said the mare.

"Yes?"

"Beware White Sentinel."

"Whatever for?"

"A father does a lot to protect his daughter, does he not?" And with that, the mare winked and disappeared. Not long after, Red fell into the darkness and awoke.

When she awoke, she felt three things. One, she was going to throw up her dinner. Two, she was about to scream. And three, a horrible and shocking truth had just been told to her.

* * *

Rose woke up back in Steadfast. She yawned and stretched, looking at the stars. She smiled when she spotted a few constellations she knew. Then the voice in her head spoke up.

"Finally! I can get some killing done!", said the voice. It was feminine.

"I am not going to kill anypony. Just leave me alone, for tonight at least.", said Rose

"Tut, tut. The pony wants to enjoy the night. Well I don't care. I could give less of a shit."

"I am not killing anypony, Rose."

"Yes you are. You are because I told you to."

"And if I say no?" Rose saw stars when an impact on the left side of her head sent her flying. When she got up, she could already feel her head swelling.

"Understand?"

"Yes Rose." The pony who looked like Rose Red, but wasn't, began to walk towards Ponyville.

"And Roselia? One more thing."

"Yes, Rose? What is it?"

"Don't fuck up."

"I won't. I don't want to know want to know what would happen to me if I did."

"Smart girl." And so, Roselia walked into town. She crept through alley ways until she came upon a colt. He was walking along a moon-dappled path leading towards a group of houses. Roselia began to walk towards the colt, but was thrown backward before she could walk more than five steps.

"What the hell Rose!? You said you wanted a kill!"

"Never a child. That is not right. I may love the thrill of the kill, but to kill a child, especially one so young, is so morally wrong. They don't deserve it. They are innocent. At least for now. Move on, or you will feel more pain.", Rose said angrily. Roselia did move on, and soon enough came upon a tall but utterly alone stallion. And so, Roselia was introduced to her counterpart's sickening ways.

* * *

The colt that Roselia had planned on attacking watched the mysterious mare go. He had seen her the entire time, but had made it look as if he didn't. He sat down on the dirt ground and looked at a white wall near him. His Cutie Mark, an infinity sign made up of numbers that had clock hands in the two circular parts of the sign, began to glow. In his mind, he pictured the pony again, making sure to hit every detail. The dirt around him began to shift and move, and soon began to float off the ground. This continued for a few minutes, until he opened his eyes. The dirt stopped moving, and the colt focused on the wall. On it now was a perfect drawing of Roselia, colors included. The drawing began to move, going from wall to wall, skipping and jumping. The colt watched as the drawing skipped over to another drawing, this one of a large and surly stallion. The drawing of the mare stopped behind the stallion and seemed to focus. The stallion's hair shot up with immense detail, and he began to turn around. Then the mare let go of the concentration and the wall expanded outward as a wave of energy traveled to the stallion. The stallion was knocked backward and didn't get up. The mare smiled quite sardonically and walked up to the stallion. Her eyes began to glow, and the stallion was raised off the ground. The drawings began to fade, and the colt was shocked. They were disappearing! Where were they going? When they finally disappeared, the colt considered redrawing the mare. He could still follow her. But he decided against it.

"Where is Pinkie?", mumbled the colt. Had another pony seen what he had seen, his words would have sounded like nonsense. But, he knew things others didn't about the mysterious mare. As soon as he has drawn her, the knowledge poured in like a flooding river. The colt knew about Desert and Pinkie. Hell, just about everypony in Ponyville knew. But things had gotten strange over the past day. No pony had seen Pinkie, Twilight, Desert, or even the shy Red Velvet that day. And as the colt thought about, the more things made sense. He needed to find Desert, because, from the mare's knowledge, Desert was trying to stop her. And she was the pony responsible for all the disappearances in town for the past year. He could help Desert, but only if he could find him. And so began the colt's search for Desert. The colt had no idea how much of an adventure he was getting into.

* * *

Rose waited impatiently for the stallion to wake up. But for now, Roselia was in control, and it was all Rose could do to keep her from running.

"Why do we have to do this? Haven't you scarred the ponies enough?", Roselia asked sadly. Her heart was heavy with pity for the knocked out stallion. They were going to kill him, painfully.

"Scars can be covered.", Rose retorted, "Wounds remain open."

"Wounds can be covered too.", Roselia smarted back to her devilish, sisterly counter-part.

"Sure, but an open wound hurts even more when it comes into contact with something, does it not?", Rose asked. Roselia had nothing to say, for Rose was right. Keep a wound open, the killings, and the body, Ponyville and its inhabitants, will not heal. Cover an open wound, per say, hide the killings, the pain would only be greater, for the ponies would now have to suffer through it themselves, without any outside help. Finally, the stallion woke up. He groaned.

"W-What the hell...?", he grunted to himself quietly. He looked up and saw a mare staring at him. She was strikingly beautiful. Her body was pink, with red streaks (unnervingly the color of blood) smeared here and there. Her mane and tail were the same story. Her mane seemed almost lustrous, looking as if to shine. Two dark blue eyes looked upon him with sadness.

"I see that you are awake...", said the mare. The voice that greeted the stallion was so unexpectedly seducing and lovely that he unconsciously smiled. The voice was "perfectly pitched" and laced with a thick and soft accent that would turn many heads at the sound of it. The mare, realizing what she had done, flushed and hid behind her mane, which seemed to fall perfectly over her neck. Then the stallion regained conscious thought and bared his teeth in anger.

"What have you done to me!?", he barked, spittle flying from his lips. The mare turned back, her face haunted by fear.

"I...I...I don't want to do this!", the mare cried. She started sobbing and fell to the ground of the room they were in. The room, the stallion noticed, was made of a sort of warm, insulating gray brick. The anger in him left as fast as it came, and he shakily got up and ran over to the mare. He lifted her head to see tears still falling. Her sadness, though she was his abductor, broke his heart. He sat down and pulled up the mare. Seeing her up close, she looked no older than 20.

"What is wrong?", he asked.

"I don't want to kill you!", she cried sincerely. Then something changed in her. It wasn't physically though. Her eyes seemed to get a devilish and wily glow to them. The voice that spoke again was the same, but had gained a weirdly evil under-layer.

"But, I do.", said the new mare. The stallion was thrown off the mare by some psychic force. He flew into a wall and fell to the ground dazed.

"Uggghhh..."

"Christ, ask her to do something, and she shirks it off at last second! What a fucking flake!", cursed the mare. That is when the light popped on in the stallion's head.

"You!", he cried angrily.

"Me!", the mare returned happily.

"You are the one responsible for the disappearances aren't you?", he asked. At this point he felt his body begin to heat up, though not uncomfortably.

"Mhmmm!", replied the mare.

"I have one question before you kill me, if that is what you are planning to do and if I may ask." Now the heat was uncomfortable, and still rose.

"Go ahead. No pony's holdin' ya back."

"Why? Why are you doing this?" The heat was now tiring him. He was perspiring, and he felt feverish.

"Because I enjoy it. The thrill of the kill is too much to pass up." The stallion felt as if his insides were boiling. Pain shot through his body. He finally screamed when his skin started to shrivel and peel and tear. He now knew why the brick was insulated. The mare smiled and all visions of sanity left her face. The stallion screamed more. Roselia, pent up but forced to watch the ordeal, began to cry out to Rose, telling her to stop killing the stallion. Her cries were unheeded. The stallion curled into a ball as blackened blood slowly ran from the many holes in his skin. Organs were visible. Most were charred and blackened. His screams and cries and shrieks of pain grew steadily louder as his body burned and crisped. Then after a heart-string pulling goodbye to his wife (mate, for those who prefer it) and kids, he died. His body continued to burn until it was nothing but ashes. Rose, her business done, decided to at least respect the stallion. She floated his ashes outside in a ball and scattered them in the cold and clear night. Roselia cried herself to sleep inside the shared mind of hers, while Rose hummed happily and skipped through the town, without a care in the world.

* * *

Back in the Calla, Twilight awoke slowly. Pain much like soreness shot through her body. Her muscles ached and her eyes and head hurt. When her eyes fully opened, she saw Black Dust. He was curled up next to her, his body pressed against hers, his breathing slow. Twilight smiled at her "son" and tried to get out of the bed. Instead, she let out a hiss of pain and slumped back down. Dust raised his head and looked deep into her eyes.

"Sai? Are you alright? You sound like you are in pain.", he asked quietly. Twilight sighed.

"I tried not to wake you up. And yes, I am in pain.", she replied.

"Oh, I was already awake. Let me get you something for the pain." Dust hopped out of the bed and went into his kitchen. He returned with a cup of a sweet smelling drink. Twilight drank it down, and felt her muscles relaxing. She decided that the drink was a sort of tea.

"Thanks Dust. What happened last night? I can't seem to remember..."

"You don't remember?"

"Well, I don't remember past the things coming into the room. Everything is black from that point on."

"Well, you did something amazing."

"Amazing you say?" Twilight smiled. Children and their imaginations. "What amazing thing would this be?"

"Yes! You killed all of those things!"

"Really?" Twilight's smiled turned wan. She remembered the night she had been confronted by the two pony looking things. Everything from her memory had gone black there too, but only after a certain point. When she had woke up, she was sore and unconscious, and the things had disappeared. Was this the same deal?

"Yep! You began to glow!" Twilight flushed and hid her face quickly, as if a stallion had said it to her. "Almost as if you had some inner light. The things, whatever the hell they were, were obviously scared of you, because they began to back away. You opened you mouth, as if to scream, and this ball of light about this big," Dust demonstrated with his hooves, "began to form. It grew and grew, and when it blew up, I was blinded. When my eyes cleared, the things were gone. But, I know you killed them, because light always beats darkness, doesn't it?"

Dust had no idea how much these words would mean to Twilight and her friends in the future, even him.

Twilight's smile had all but been wiped off her face. "What is it that made the light, do you think?", she asked

"I dunno. But whatever it is, it's inside you." Dust's eyes darkened. "And it's very powerful."

"Mhmm." Twilight began to try and get out of the bed.

"And one other thing." Twilight turned her head around.

"What is it Dust?"

"I have a feeling that it's not over."

"What?"

"The evil. It's not gone. In fact, something tells me that it's actually getting stronger."

"Let's take our mind off that for now, shall we?" Twilight kissed the top of Dust's head, and slid out of the bed. Even her hooves were tender, but she needed to get outside. Why, you may ask. Simply put, Twilight believed everything Dust said, even about the evil. And more, she feared that things may have gotten way out of Desert's control. Big time.

* * *

Pinkie woke up grumpy and exhausted. Her sleep had been terrible, and the only good thing about the previous night had been sleeping against Water. Pinkie smiled and nuzzled his chin. He stirred and woke up. He looked at Pinkie and smiled. The purple spots under his eyes told a story of their own.

"Sleep well?", he asked tiredly. Pinkie shook her head.

"I kept waking up at the slightest sound. I guess those things last night really spooked Rose, because she was on high alert all night. I would feel her fade and come back, wary and in a very tense mood.", Pinkie explained. Water nodded.

"I felt you moving and twisting last night. You almost flopped off the bed at one point. But you did quiet down after some point." That is when Pinkie remembered the event of the previous night. Both her and Water had awoken to a scream, coming from somewhere nearby, but they were too tired to do anything. Now Pinkie realized something. The scream had come from below them. And Rainbow Dash was below them. Pinkie panicked and felt energy flow through her muscles. She jumped out of the bed and galloped downstairs. Water, seemingly remembering the incident at the same time, did the same. When they got downstairs, what they saw made Rose almost faint inside Pinkie. Blood was spattered in the place where Dash had laid down the previous night. There was a trail of what looked like blood that ended at nothing. If there had been a body, it was gone.

"DASH!?", Pinkie cried out. Tears had begun to stream down her face. She ran in and out of rooms, each time panicking more and more.

"There is one place you haven't checked yet.", Water Call said. He led Pinkie to a door leading outside. As the door opened, she squinted against the glare of sunlight streaming through the dark, stormy clouds above. As her eyes adjusted, she could make out a shape, and then two. Her eyes focused, and she saw Rainbow Dash sitting on a balcony just above the mill's wheel. Next to her was a large stallion, and Dash looked tiny in comparison. He was all white, like a puffy, cottony cloud. But, many parts of his skin would briefly turn dark, like the storm clouds above. Once, one of the grey spots flashed, like lightning. At the same moment, all ponies on the balcony started when a loud peal of thunder rocked the sky. Pinkie heard the two ponies talking.

"What is it that makes you like this?", Dash asked the stallion. Pinkie guessed she was asking about the stallion's skin, which changed like Water's eyes.

"I actually do not know. I guess the work of...what do you call it...chance?", responded the stallion.

"Well I'll be damned if it's chance, because chance isn't usually that favorable", Dash quipped.

"Yup. Chance is a bitch.", muttered the stallion. Dash laughed a cute little laugh that made Rose smile in Pinkie's head. Dash sighed and leaned on the large stallion, who looked down lovingly at her. There was a weird moment of silence before Dash shocked Pinkie and Water both.

"I know you are both there. You don't have to be all sneaky.", she said without even turning. The stallion next to her jolted and looked back. Recognition came over his face when he saw Water, and something beyond recognition came when he saw Pinkie. His horn, which Pinkie hadn't seen before, glowed bright white, and seemed to spark with almost whitish-blue electricity. He disappeared, gone into the mist that arose from the river. There was a very long moment of silence that left Pinkie feeling uncomfortable. Finally Rainbow Dash turned around, her usually bright magenta eyes burned a dark purplish-pink fire. Obviously something about her posture was cute to Water, because he looked away, trying to look innocent, but failing miserably. Dash walked up to Pinkie and put up a hoof, holding it out in front of Pinkie's forehead. Pinkie felt Rose slip into partial control, giving the feeling of being both her and Rose at the same time.

"Water, look down at me. I understand that you love Pinkie, but you don't have make a fool of yourself trying to hide the fact that you thought something about me." There was nothing cute about Dash now, and when Water looked down into those burning, scary yet beautiful eyes, his expression became sober. "There is something I need to tell you two."

"What is it Dash?", Pinkie asked curiously. Water, trying extremely hard to hide a persistent blush, only nodded for Dash to go on. Dash, seeing the blush, let out a little giggle, and little did Pinkie know, was holding in the urge to kiss his forehead.

"Well, you two aren't going to take this well, but it needs to be said."

"Go on.", Pinkie said.

"How do I put this...", Dash considered. She tried to pull up the memory of the previous night dream, but could not. In fact, she had completely forgotten about it. "We need to change the future."

* * *

"Are you insane!?", Pinkie shouted. Water Call looked utterly lost. Dash noticed this and used it to her advantage.

"Does Water even know where you're from, and why you and I have Marks on our rump?", she asked. Pinkie looked down. Then, she turned towards Water. It was time for the truth to come out.

"What is she talking about, dear?", Water asked. Pinkie couldn't help but smile when he called her dear. Then the smile was replaced by a distant and forlorn look of sorrow.

"Well, you obviously know I am not from here. But I go much further than not being from the Calla. I am from the future. I know it's hard to understand, but that's how I know Desert. He wanted us to know his story. So, he brought back in time to his past.", Pinkie said quietly. Water Call listened quietly and was focused on Pinkie. He was silent for some time before he finally spoke.

"I guess it makes sense. Things seemed off when I first met you. Like something wrong that was fixed and made right.", Water said. Dash and Pinkie both grew confused.

"Something wrong made right?", Dash asked. Water nodded.

"Wouldn't be the other way around, since we aren't from this time?", Pinkie asked. Water shrugged.

"I would think so, but I guess not in this case. Before, ponies would simply disappear, without a sign of any attacker. Ever since I met you, however, those Darklings began to show up. I now realize that you were most likely meant to come here. To come here and change the future.", he explained. Pinkie leaned her head up and nuzzled his neck as she began to cry.

"I love Desert in my time. That makes the fact that I love you weird, but I do love you. A lot. I don't know what I would do if something were to happen to you. If we change the future...", Pinkie said, trailing off. She continued to nuzzle Water, her tears slowly dripping onto the planks of the balcony. Dash spoke up.

"We do what we must do, no matter the risk. Pinkie, this is for a better future! If we don't change the future, we will be doomed to a life of lost hope and lies. If we change the future though, at least some of us will live to see happier days. Even if it cost the lives of many ponies.", Dash spoke softly to her friend. It was Water who spoke up next.

"You must listen to what your friend tells you. I always knew things were off in the Calla. Now is the chance to change all of that. Now is the chance to make everything right.", he said. Pinkie smiled wanly and kissed him full on the lips, surprising him slightly. "You mustn't care about what happens to me. If I die, it is for a better cause. You have to know that Pinkie. I love you, so much. I really do. Now is your time to show the world what you are worth, my love." Pinkie sighed.

"I guess you are both right. Fate and Destiny have a funny way of mixing with Coincidence. Maybe us seeing Desert's past was supposed to happen. Supposed to happen so we can change the future.", she said.

"And that is where you finally found your cause, Pinkamena.", said a new voice. The stallion who had been standing next to Dash reappeared, once again standing next to Dash. His voice was deep, and seemed rich in a sense. It had a Spanish-like accent to it that made it seem full. Dash smiled and nuzzled the newcomer. He smiled back and the sun poked through the clouds at that moment he smiled. It disappeared again when the smile melted in an unemotional frown.

"Who are you, and how do you know my name!?", Pinkie/Rose growled. Water grew restless when he heard the Italian accent slipping into Pinkie's voice.

"Pinkie, that's Lonely Cloud.", Water said with awe, respect, and fear all at once.

"I know you because I am by you everyday. Don't you recognize me?", Lonely asked. That's when it hit Pinkie. Dash was so obviously in love with the stallion. Pinkie had always wondered where Dash got her power over Rose. Now she knew. All she had to do was connect the dots. Lonely was proof of changing the future, for he was a Calla pony that both Desert and Water knew. Which meant that the change had already begun.

* * *

Red Velvet stood outside her house, letting the memories flow. Things had been so off in the Calla, so wrong, but not after this. The pony of the dream had warned Red to not change the future, but Red was ignoring that command, that advice, just this one time. She had to go do something that had to be done. There was a certain filly she had to save. And the filly she had to save meant a lot to her. And why wouldn't she? Why wouldn't a mother want to go save her only child?

* * *

Twilight had been a panic state ever since Dust had warned her of a coming end. He had said that the source of the Darklings would be found, and dealt with, but that the Darkness was still going to advanced. When asked how he knew, he only shrugged his shoulders, saying it was a gut feeling.

* * *

Red Velvet reached the cave in which she knew Orange was held by nightfall. What she found, however, was something completely unexpected. Orange was tied to a wall by ropes. And a stallion stood in front of her. A stallion that Red knew all too well.

"Sentinel!?", she asked angrily. The stallion turned. He was white, but his usually blue eyes were a crimson red. The color of blood.

"Red? What are you doing here!? You weren't supposed to find this!", he screamed. He charged Red and knocked her over. Dazed, she couldn't do anything when White Sentinel picked her up and put against the wall. A few Darklings appeared around him and helped in tying her to the wall. Red stretched out a hoof and touched her daughter's.

"Why would you do this to us? Especially to our daughter?", Red asked.

"It's for the better. I have to keep you safe. Everything else has to be destroyed.", Sentinel said.

"WHAT!?", Orange cried. She struggled to get free of her bidnings, but couldn't. "You promised that everypony would be fine! You promised Daddy!"

"So Daddy told a little lie, but I couldn't tell you the truth, my dearest child. If you knew the truth, you would have never come with me.", White said.

"YOU SENT ONE OF THOSE THINGS TO CAPTURE ME! I NEVER AGREED TO ANYTHING!", she spat. One of the Darklings recoiled and backed up slightly.

"I am so sorry you two. But this must be done.", Sentinel huffed quietly.

"No.", said Red. Except her voice sounded like one of many, like an entire choir had said it. White whirled around to see his wife, a pony whom he still had feelings for (and, against what most would think, Red still loved Sentinel also), glowing brightly.

"W-What are you doing?", a Darkling asked. It was young, and obviously had no intention of wrongdoing.

"Saving the innocent.", Red replied, again in that multi-voice. She let out a ear-splitting shriek as her body pulled apart, splitting into strands. The strands spread through the cave and out of it, going into the open air. There were billions of them, and many even made it as far as the Calla, many miles away. A voice spoke up in the heads of Orange and the one Darkling, telling them to close there eyes and hang on. With a loud _RIIIIP!_, one of the larger strands split down the middle, forming two strands. One ended in blue, the other in black. Then a loud _BANG!, _and all the strands returned to where Red had been. A shockwave erupted from the place where the strands had collapsed into, making Sentinel black out and making the Darklings, other than the young one, vaporise.

* * *

As the shockwave progressed towards, into, and out of the Calla, the ponies within felt almost nothing. Almost. Each one felt slightly different, as if only the slightest thing had changed.

* * *

Orange still had her eyes squeezed shut when the reassuring sound of her mother's voice told her that it was safe to open them. Orange opened them slowly, and at first things were blurry. Finally, her vision cleared, and she saw the truth. Standing over the body of her father was not her mom, but another mare. The mare was a dark chocolate brown, and her tail was a mix of light and dark tan. Two dark-blue orbs of water looked down at the fallen stallion. Orange, having fallen from the ropes that had tied her, saw the same look of surprise she had on the young Darkling. She became infuriated.

"Where is my mom?", Oranged demanded. The mare looked at her.

"I am right here, sweetheart.", replied the mare.

"No, my mother is not brown! What have you done with her!?"

"Nothing. For the answer to that question, you must ask Time."

"If you are my mom, then what happened?"

"I did something I should have never done."

"What would that be?", asked the Darkling. He was cowering slightly in a dark spot of the cave.

"I saved your life. I changed Time. In doing so, I changed myself." Red nuzzled the unconscious body of Sentinel. He stirred, and began to wake up.

"How does that affect you, might I ask sai?", asked the Darkling. Sentinel was now looking around groggily, and he began to move as if to get up.

"It affects me because I am Time."

* * *

**The Next Night**

* * *

Twilight and Dust sat together on the hill. They watched the procession that was exiling Sentinel from the land. Dust leaned against Twilight.

"Is everything going to get better now?", he asked softly. Twilight smiled wanly and nuzzled his snout, with a kiss on the forehead following that.

"I really do hope so, Dust. I really do..."

A fine, reassuring message from one who is about to betray the only one they love.

* * *

Pinkie and Water walked up towards the top of a hill in the moon-lit night. Pinkie had been hiding something from Water, but it was time for the secrets to stop. She stopped at the top of the hill, and it took a few seconds for Water to realize that Pinkie wasn't next to him anymore. When he did, he slipped, falling face first into the ground. Pinkie laughed, her voice a mix of the high pitch Pinkie and the seductive, silky voice of Roselia. Pinkie let her secret free, and Water caught on extremely quickly. His eye's dilated, and his nostril's flared. He seemed frozen for a second before he charged up the hill. When he reached the top, he tackled Pinkie, making sure to defend her from the blow of hitting the ground.

"Come with me Water. Come, and discover what it means to love.", Pinkie/Roselia said. That is exactly what they did. They discovered what it means to love, and boy how they fell so deeply into that trance. They never even once thought of the repercussions, if there were any to come.

* * *

Back in Ponyville, everything seemed to get a happy glow to it. Even the most upset, tired, and grumpy pony (or dragon, who was quite upset at his friends' disappearances) smiled and grew happy. The only one who didn't smile was Luna. Luna, who knew the truth about the glowing happiness. Luna, who wished that she could spend this time with Chance, embracing him and making wishes with him for a better tomorrow. Luna, who was never truly lonely because of a certain pony who never left her side. Luna, who knew that bad things were to come.

* * *

Pinkie and Water lay side by side, panting but still smiling like idiots. Their bodies were tired, but their minds were wide awake and at peace. That was, until Pinkie began to fade, like a mist. She saw her vision going gray, and she called out to Water. His eyes were wide and scared, and Pinkie leaned forward and kissed him passionately.

"I must be going! I am sure I will be back! I don't know how long I will be, or if I ever will return, but I will always remember you! I love you so much!", she cried.

"Please don't go! I can't live without you! I-" Pinkie heard no more, for the gray now had her entirely surrounded. When it finally cleared, she sat on the edge of a semi-circle formed by all the others that had come to the Calla. They all woke up, one by one, Twilight panicking a little, and a strange new brown pony looked up and stretched. Pinkie was so caught up in seeing her friends that when a snout nuzzled her neck, she almost shrieked. She looked back to see Desert. He smiled and helped Pinkie up.

"Welcome home.", he said.

* * *

Pinkie looked around. Everything was white, except for some homes that sat in an open square. Desert's eagle eyes scanned the newcomers, and stopped dead when they saw the new pony. She was a dark brown, and her tail was smattered with light and dark tan. Her eyes were two dark-blue pools of deep water. He frowned when he also saw Dash, a pony he knew, but was not part of the original four he brought into the past

"Everypony!", Desert called. All eyes shifted to him. "You must be wondering why we are here, instead of in the Calla. Well, something weird happened, something corrupted, and it drained my energy. I must use this time to rest and recharge my self. Feel free to create, for this place is powered by our thoughts."

"What do you mean, create?", Twilight asked. Desert looked across the barren white landscape. Suddenly, the white was replaced with a blue sky, a sun, and grass and ground. Twilight nodded in awe. "I see..."

"I must go now. My body feel as if it has been crushed to a paste.", Desert said. He walked off, and everypony was silent until he disappeared into a home. The new mare, the brown one, was the first to speak.

"Something corrupt... What does that mean? Evil? Darkness?" A pause. "Change?" Everypony was surprised when she spoke, for her voice sounded eerily like Red Velvet's.

"I would not know. Here is one thing you can answer though. Who the hell are you?", Pinkie said. The mare looked around, looking into the eyes of Dash, Twilight, Big Mac, and finally Pinkie.

"You would all know from a time before now. In fact, most of you would know me quite personally. Especially you, Twilight.", the mare responded.

"You can't be...", Twilight said, gasping.

"Yes she can.", Dash replied coldly.

"Red?", Twilight asked. Red velvet nodded.

"My name is no longer Red Velvet, however. Please, call me Earth Shire.", Shire said sadly. "Before you ask what happened, I do not want to talk about it. It is personal."

"But...", Pinkie started. Big Mac, who was next to Pinkie, nudged her. She looked at him and he shook his head. Pinkie understood what meant. _Don't push it._

"Let us go our separate ways for now. I am guessing that you all have had something happen that you want to get off your mind.", Dash said. Someway, somehow, all the ponies listened to her, and they all walked silently in different directions.

* * *

**One Week Later**

* * *

It had been a total of about a week in the dream. Reports from Shire stated that Desert was in a coma, but his condition was getting better. Pinkie, in her towering home at the edge of the little dream town, was bustling around. Though it had been a week, time went faster in this dream it seemed, and it felt more like closer to a month. Pinkie gasped and fell when a huge pain gripped her belly and stomach. She cried out and Dash, who had been helping clean the home, rushed to her friend's aid. She helped her up and then she too gasped.

"Pinkie, you might want to look in the mirror...", Dash said. There was a very soothing and happy smile on her face. Pinkie obeyed and looked in a mirror. What she saw made her happy, just like Dash. She saw something that she had been thinking about for some time. She saw a small bulge in her belly. That only meant one thing.

"Water is a father and I am a mother...", Pinkie said happily, and she fainted.

* * *

**Some Time Later**

* * *

Pinkie lay exhausted on her bed. Dash was running about the room, fetching certain things. Finally, she returned with a small, moving bundle. Dash handed the bundle to Pinkie. Inside was a little filly.

"What shall you name her?", Dash asked happily. Pinkie thought for some time. Two bright green eyes peered at their mother.

"Moon Dust..."

* * *

**Another chapter successfully completed! Sorry about the ridiculous wait on this one, but I had very little time during the school year to write. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and most of all, I hope you enjoyed the little surprise twist I threw in at the end. Now that it is summer, I hope to get Ch. 0-3 out by the end of August, at most. Until then,**

**Happy Reading, Fellow Fictioners!**


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